ST STEPHENS CHURCH AND SCHOOL

St Stephens Anglican Church and School consists of a bluestone church building of 1856, and a rendered brick church school of 1843 with a bluestone addition c1856. The church was built with the support of the influential Henty family and contains unique public and family memorials to members of the pioneering family as well as memorials to other figures of significance to the history of the State of Victoria, most notably the memorial organ chamber (bluestone addition to the 1856 building), constructed in 1882 after some controversy through a donation made by Anna Henty, the widow of Edward Henty; a group of three stained glass windows attributed to the firm of Ferguson, Urie and Lyon of Melbourne in the chancel dedicated to the memory of Stephen George Henty and installed in 1873 as the result of a public memorial fund; a triple stained glass window of English origin over the southern door dedicated to the memory of Edward Henty and dating from the 1890s; and an ornate brass lectern where the outstretched wings of an eagle support the Bible donated by the youngest Henty brother, Francis, in memory of his wife Mary Ann after her death in 1881. A historic olive tree is located immediately adjacent to the church. It was planted by Archdeacon JCP Allnutt in 1881 from a seedling taken from the olive grove in the Garden of Gethsemane at the foot of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem.

The school initially operated as a National (as opposed to Denominational) School but was also used for the Church of England's religious services until the adjacent bluestone church was opened1856. In 1862 the school but became a private church school after the passing of the Education Act in 1872. 

St Stephen?s Anglican Church and School are of historic and architectural importance to the State of Victoria.

St Stephen's Anglican Church (1856, Organ Chamber 1882, Baptistry 1884, Narthex 1976) is historically significant for its continuity in religious observation extending from the oldest continuing pioneer settlement in Victoria (Edward Henty's, in November 1834) to the present day. It is of historical importance for its intimate connection with the Henty family, one of Victoria's more prominent pioneering families and the founders of Portland.

St Stephen's Anglican Church, which was originally built as a first stage of an envisaged grand edifice designed to hold 1000 people, is architecturally important as the manifestation of a vision for Portland which reflected its early aspirations to be one of the principal cities of Victoria. It is also important for its high quality of workmanship.

St Stephen's Church School is historically significant as the earliest extant school in Victoria. It is important for its association with the history of education in Victoria and the information it can provide about early colonial schooling in Victoria?s pre-colonial phase of development. 

As a vernacular building, St Stephen's Church School is architecturally important for its ability to provide information about early construction methods in the State.