Star of the Sea

In 1855 Bishop Willson applied for a government grant of four acres for a Catholic church at Waterloo Point (now Swansea), this request was ignored.

At a meeting of the Glamorgan Council held on 19th April 1860, a proposal by Councillor John Meredith and seconded by Councillor James Amos that the Commissariat Store (part of the Waterloo Point military station) be sold to the Catholic community for the sum of £30 on the condition that any flooring and joists on the upper level be taken down and all iron bars that may not be required be returned to council. This motion was carried. The Commissariat Store was then converted into the Catholic church.

The 1830s building was made of stone and rubble with mortar made from burnt and crushed seashells mixed with sand and salt water. The church was named Star of the Sea because of it's position in the landscape. The weather was a factor, with harsh winds blowing across Great Oyster Bay the little church deteriorated. Many locals recall the ruins on the point in the 1940s.

A new church was built in Victoria Street and opened in 1931, it was named Church of Mary.

See Church of Mary No 253.