Our Parish

The Parish of St Mary-le-Bow with St Pancras Soper Lane, All Hallows Honey Lane, All Hallows Bread Street, St John the Evangelist Watling Street, St Augustine with St Faith under St Paul’s and St Mildred Bread Street with St Margaret Moyses

As a Church of England parish we recognise our ‘cure of souls’ for all those who live and work in and pass through our parish, regardless of belief or faith commitment. As a largely non-residential parish we exercise this ministry toward all those who visit and work in local businesses and industry.

Our parish today is the result of a number of parishes merging and parish buildings closing as a result of destruction in the Great Fire of London (St Pancas Soper Lane, All Hallows Honey Lane, St John the Evangelist Watling Street), destruction during the Blitz (St Augustine with St Faith under St Paul’s, St Mildred Bread Street with St Margaret Moyses), or being closed in response to demographic change in the City (All Hallows Bread Street).

The Parish Archives

Most of our records were probably lost when the church was destroyed by firebombs in 1941. Any remaining records are held by the London Metropolitan Archives. This is true of many of the City churches.

‘St Mary-le-Bow’ is in the heart of the City of London, not in Bow, which is a couple of miles outside the City. If your research has led you to Bow (formerly a village, now a suburb) the likely church is ‘St Mary, Bow’ 020 8981 7916.

Our church, St Mary-le-Bow (Bow, in this instance referring to an architectural feature of the Crypt), has the famous Bow Bells, which rang curfew in the Middle Ages and called Dick Whittington back to London; St Mary, Bow Road was a country church until the 1860s saw London expand.

 

Dick Whittington heard our bells as he rested on Highgate Hill, and returned to the City where eventually he became Lord Mayor three times. Highgate Hill is five miles from St Mary-le-Bow – so many people can claim to have been born with the sound of the bells, who are not actually connected with the church.

Our Churchyard only has deep burials; others were removed from the Crypt shortly before 1960. St Mary, Bow has a small churchyard surrounding it. But be warned – while once it was a country church, nowadays it sits in the centre of a busy dual carriageway.

We hope this information is helpful and we wish you success in your research.