A Brief History of the Incumbents at St Nic’s
1882 – Present
HENRY ELLIOT FOX 1882-1895
Henry Fox was the nephew of his predecessor, George Townshend Fox, who had been vicar since 1856 and in whose time St Nicholas Church was rebuilt. H.E. Fox continued his uncle’s strong evangelical ministry. From 1885 – 1890 he was assisted by Alfred Robert Tucker, who was called straight from his curacy at St Nic’s to become Bishop of Eastern Equatorial Africa; the link with the church in Uganda still exists today. Prebendary Fox afterwards became General Secretary of the Church Missionary Society.
ROBERT BRUCE 1896-1903
Robert Bruse came to St Nic’s after 38 years’ service with the Church Missionary Society. He was 63 and had just completed the printing of the Persian translation of the Bible. Unlike previous vicars, he had no private means; from a weekly offering which he instituted, funds were raised to secure a reasonable income for vicar and curate, and to purchase the vicarage in Claypath (for £1,800!). There was much interest in the flourishing work of CMS, the Bible Society, and the South American Missionary Society, and Dr. Bruce was committed to an evangelical preaching ministry and to active concern for the poor.
WESTLEY BOTHAMLEY 1904-1929
Westley Bothamley had been ordained in 1884 and, after several curacies, had been rector of a church in Exeter before coming to Durham. He was devoted both to personal pastoral ministry and to the public preaching of the gospel. Open-air services on the steps of the Londonderry statue in the market place were one aspect of the latter.
FREDERICK HENRY PICKERING 1930-1944
Frederick Pickering had worked as a Lloyds underwriter before his ordination, and come to St Nic’s from a curacy at Gipsy Hill in South London. In the 1930s some of the most deprived people in England were living in this area. Mr Pickering found sponsors all over the country to provide clothing, holidays and other practical help for the poor families of the parish, including the provision of Christmas fare as a result of a 1938 campaign in the Daily Mail. Mr Pickering went on to serve the remaining 20 years of his ministry as vicar of Christ Church, Southport.
HUGH ALEXANDER EVANS HOPKINS 1944-1947
Hugh Hopkins was the first vicar appointed by the Church Pastoral Aid Society. After work in India, and then with the Inter-Varsity Fellowship (now UCCF), he had become Vicar of Holy Trinity, Redhill, at the beginning of the war. During his three years at St Nic’s the parish saw great changes as local residents were rehoused outside its boundaries, and the population had dropped to only 500 when Mr Hopkins (making a new link with East Africa) left to become Provost of Nairobi Cathedral.
JOHN WILLIAM WENHAM 1948-1953
John Wenham had been Curate at St Paul’s, Hadley Wood, in Herefordshire before becoming vicar here. Numbers were growing at the university as men returned from the armed forces, and students became increasingly a part of the congregation. In 1953, Mr Wenham was appointed Vice Principal of Tynedale Hall, Bristol. An influential writer, he was afterwards Warden of Latimer House, the evangelical research centre in Oxford. He continued to live in Oxford in retirement until his death in 1996.
GEORGE JOHN CHARLES MARCHANT 1954-1974
George Marchant came to Durham from Boston, Lincolnshire. During this period the city centre was remodelled and with new housing the population of the parish grew again. Sunday morning children’s groups replaced the afternoon Sunday School; the Youth Centre in Providence Row was built; members of staff at St John’s College became honorary assistants at the church. Canon Marchant served on Diocesan Synod and General Synod, and as Rural Dean. After leaving St Nic’s he became Archdeacon of Auckland. He retired to Norwich and died in 2006.
GEORGE LEONARD CAREY 1975-1982
Geroge Carey had served most of his ministry in theological colleges (St John’s, Nottingham and Oak Hill) before coming to St Nic’s. The outstanding feature of his incumbency was the complete renovation of the church building, described in his book “The Church in the Marketplace”. The very large sum required for the rebuilding was raised almost entirely by church members who saw the gospel potential of the scheme. After leaving Durham, Dr Carey was first Principal of Trinity College, Bristol, then Bishop of Bath and Wells, before his appointment as Archbishop of Canterbury in 1990.
MICHAEL JARVIS WILCOCK 1982-1998
Michael Wilcock had served curacies at Christ Church, Southport (with Canon Pickering, vicar of St Nic’s 1930 – 1944), and at All Souls, Langham Place, London, before becoming Vicar of St Faith’s, Maidstone. He went on to become Director of Pastoral Studies at Trinity College, Bristol for five years before coming to St Nic’s. A respected writer, Michael retired in 1998 to Eastborne.
DALE ROBERT HANSON 1998-2007
Dale Hason was appointed vicar in 1998. Prior to that he had served for two and a half years on the staff with Michael Wilcock in a second incumbent-status position of “Associate Minister”. He had previously served as Curate of St Peter’s, Woolton, Liverpool, as an Assistant Minister of St Andrew’s Church, Kowloon, Hong Kong, and as Vicar of St Luke’s in the Billingham Team Ministry before moving to Durham. On leaving St Nic’s, Dale returned to Hong Kong to be Minister-in-Charge of Shatin Anglican Church in Hong Kong.
J STEPHEN BELLAMY 2008-
Steve Bellamy became vicar in May 2008, moving here from St James, Birkdale in Southport where he had been vicar for 16 years. Before this, Stephen had been Chaplain to Bishop David Sheppard (who was then Bishop of Liverpool) and had served curacies at All Hallows, Allerton in Liverpool and at Christ Church, Southport.