▶Date of birth:  1 July 1823         Place of birth: Rotherham, Yorkshire

▶Father: Charles Barr       Mother: Hannah Walker

▶Spouse(s):  Mary Jane Deck      Date(s) of marriage:  1848     Place(s) of marriage:

▶Occupation: Clergyman (Anglican)

▶Lifestory: Edward Walker (1823-72) was born in Rotherham, and graduated BA from Lincoln College, Oxford BA 1846, MA 1849, he was awarded the honorary degree of DCL by Oxford in 1865. In 1848 he married Mary Jane Deck; she and her brother were both hymn-writers, and some of their hymns were included in Edward Walker’s hymnbook Psalms and hymns for public and social worship (1855). Three years later this book was introduced to Cheltenham parish church.

In 1849 the Revd. Edward Walker and his wife Mary Jane lived at 42 Clarence Square in Pittvillestrong>, when he was the Association Secretary of the South Midland district of the Church Pastoral Aid Society. The couple only lived at 42 Clarence Square for a matter of months in 1849, and by 1850-51 he had left Cheltenham. He was the incumbent of St Jude, Ancoats, Manchester 1849-53 and then of St Matthias, Salford 1853-7.

In 1857 he returned to Cheltenham and succeeded Francis Close as the Incumbent of the Parish Church 1857-72, and became the first Rector of Cheltenham in 1863.

Walker had oversight of the Parish Church when it was repaired 1859-61. He was also responsible for the erection of the temporary iron church in Clarence Street 1859-77 and in St George’s Road 1877-9; this was replaced by St Matthew’s church, opened in 1879 and completed in 1883. Following the death of her husband in 1872, Mary Walker lived at 15 Pittville Villas (now 38 Prestbury Road). A large monument was erected to Walker in the chancel of the Parish Church.

His son, the Revd. James Edward Walker, became a Presbyterian and opened a chapel at the junction of Prestbury Road and Whaddon Road, which from 1912 was known as the Walker Memorial Church. It was replaced by a new chapel in 1988. In 1880 the Revd. James Edward Walker married Edith Ann Borlase and they lived with his mother at 15 Pittville Villas.

For further information, see: A. Munden, Wearing the giant’s armour. Edward Walker (1823-1872), the first Rector of Cheltenham (Cheltenham, 2003).

▶Moved to Pittville from:      Moved from Pittville to: Ancoats, Manchester

▶Date of death:   1872     Place of death:

▶Date of burial:         Place of burial:

▶Notes:        ID: 5843

Contributor(s):  Alan Munden