Darnley Island All Saints Anglican Church, Torres Strait, Conservation Management Plan

Converge Heritage + Community was engaged by the Anglican Church to prepare a Conservation Management Pan (CMP) for the All Saints Anglican Church on Darnley Island. The church was originally known as the Ziona Chapel and was officially opened in c.1899. It was constructed below the site of the original London Missionary Society mission house and school, using locally produced lime from burnt coral and basalt, under the direction of an Erub Islander named Manai and a South Sea Islander named Albert Ware.

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The Church of England (now the Anglican Church) remodelled the church in 1963. Remodelling included raising the roofline and extending internal walls. Erosion has threatened the preservation of the building, and in 1976 extensive erosion of the beach necessitated the building of a stone sea wall approximately 15 metres from the building for protection from erosion from the strong tides. The state heritage listed building was in a state of severe disrepair and CMP was prepared with particular focus on the condition and significance of the place, so that a practical program of forward maintenance could be implemented and maintained for the church.