Church & Sunday School
Moving St Luke’s Church from Copley to Leigh Creek
Around 1957, Bishop Thomas decided to move the church from Copley to Leigh Creek. In his opinion a team of men with poles underneath the building could carry it up – only six miles! In 1958 a small team of volunteers, including Ian Webber, Murray Kleeman and Harry Billinghurst, dismantled the church. The corrugated iron sheeting was removed and the frame cut into pieces to be transported on a truck hired from ETSA. There were many difficulties in getting it all back together including the pilfering of some of the roof sheets from the site. Eventually reassembled, a porch was added using bricks made at the Northfield kiln. Funded by the congregation finishing and decorating the new church was a long process. New windows were made by Symons & Symons in Adelaide and the pews came from Craddock. The relocated church was eventually dedicated by Bishop Tom Jones in April 1960. (Harry Billinghurst’s recollection – written in September 1981)
When the old Leigh Creek township was abandoned the church building was returned to Copley.
Maxine Miller’s first Holy Communion with Father Bill Wauchope in 1959
