Plaque

St Paul’s Choir school

Erection date: 26/1/1874

Inscription

{The inscriptions on these panels read:}

{On the left panel:}
AD {HONOREM} DEI OMNIPOTENTIS
{ET} AD {PR}OFE{CTUM} SANCTAE MATRIS ECCLESIAE
{L}APIDE{M H}UNC ANGULAREM
{DOMUS IN} USUM PUERORUM CHORISTARUM
{SANCTI} PAULI LONDINENSIS AEDIFICANDAE
{POSTRI}DIE FESTI CONVERSIONIS SANCTI PAULI
MDCCCLXXIV
DEPOSUIT R G CHURCH DECANUS

{On the right panel:}
ADSISTENT[IBUS]
FRATRIBUS

ROBERTO GREGORY CANONICO
HENRICO P LIDDON CANONICO
JOSEPHO B LIGHTFOOT CANONICO
PIERS C CLAUGHTON CANONICO
ALBERTO BARFF MAGISTRO PUERORUM
FRANCISCO C PENROSE ARCHITECTO

{Translated:}
The dean, R. G. Church, laid this cornerstone of the house being built for the use of the choir boys of St Paul’s in London on the day after the feast of the conversion of St Paul in 1874 in honour of almighty God and for the benefit of the holy Mother of the Church. . .

. . . in the presence of the brothers, Canon Robert Gregory, Canon Henry P. Liddon, Canon Joseph B. Lightfoot, Canon Piers C. Claughton, the boys’ teacher Albert Barff and the architect Francis C. Penrose.

The feast of the conversion of St Paul is on 25th January which gives the erection date as 26th January 1874. Five years later this same group of clerics erected Amen Court.

Site: St Paul’s Choir school (1 memorial)

EC4, Carter Lane, 36

Built as St Paul’s Choir school this opened in 1876 with 40 boys. Now a hostel for the YHA. The inscription on the frieze around the building reads: MIHI AUTEM ABSIT GLORIARI NISI IN CRUCE DOMINI NOSTRI JESU CHRISTI / PER QUEM MIHI MUNDUS CRUCIFIXUS EST ET EGO MUNDO. {But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world - from St Paul’s letter to the Galatians 6:14.}
On one corner there is a projecting heraldic cartouche with the dean's arms and putto, with the two panels beneath.

We are indebted to David Hopkins for the Latin translations, indeed for deciphering a lot of the text as well, and for much of the research.

In the 1960/70s the school moved to the new building immediately to the east of St Pauls Cathedral, in New Change. Via Facebook, Nick Bickel specified the date as just after Easter 1967.