Church Of St John

The Church of St John, also known as St John the Baptist Parish Church, is a parish church located in Hackney, built between 1792 and 1797 by architect James Spiller. This very large building is constructed of stock brick, with a tower made of Portland stone added in 1812 by Robert Streather. Streather also included semi-circular stone Ionic porches at all four outer corners of the church. The main structure is shaped like a cross, elongated in the north-south direction, with the entrance located at the north end and the worship space oriented across the cross.

The church features three-bay arcaded fronts on all sides, adorned with a heavy modillioned stone cornice and a stone-coped parapet. There are pediments at the north and south ends, although the pediments on the sides have been removed. The four set-back corners of the building receive similar architectural treatment. The tower and steeple include a clock situated over the north portico, which is semi-circular and supported by four Ionic columns, with a banded rusticated stone backing.

Inside, there is a gallery supported by fluted Doric columns around three sides of the church. The interior was restored following a fire in 1955. The church houses an organ that was relocated from All Saints, Ennismore Gardens, Westminster, and contains many monuments from the old church, including brasses, three-dimensional figures, and tablets.