Our Saviour’s Church, located on Tafawa Balewa Road, near Tafawa Balewa Square on Lagos Island, is one of the most historically distinct Anglican churches in Nigeria. Its origins extend back to the early twentieth century, and its development is documented in legislative records, church archives and published historical accounts. This article presents the verified history of the church from its foundation as St Saviour’s Colonial Church to its present status as a parish of the Anglican Diocese of Lagos, based on documented sources.
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Colonial Beginnings
The church’s earliest recorded service was held on 22 December 1909, when a service was conducted in the hall of King’s College, Lagos to dedicate the space for worship. Present at that service were Bishop Tugwell, Bishop Oluwole, and Reverend L S Noble, then newly appointed as Colonial Chaplain. Regular worship continued in the King’s College hall until 24 December 1911, when Reverend Noble dedicated a half‑completed building on the present site of the church for public worship, marking the beginning of what became known as the Colonial Church or St Saviour’s Colonial Church.
The church’s early purpose was to provide a place of Anglican worship for expatriates and colonial officials working in Lagos. Sources note that it remained unique for its time, founded by and for a specific community, with practices and attendance reflective of that community’s needs.
Legal Incorporation and Building Completion
In 1923, the church’s legal status was formalised by the St Saviour’s Church Council (Incorporated) Act No. 2 of 1923, Cap 35, of the Federation of Nigeria. This statute established the Church Council as a corporate body capable of owning property and administering its affairs independently. This incorporation under statute was unusual for Nigerian churches of the period, distinguishing St Saviour’s from mission‑founded parishes which operated directly under ecclesiastical authority.
After years of construction and repairs, the church building was completed at a cost of One Thousand, Five Hundred Pounds and consecrated on Advent Sunday, 27 November 1932, by the Right Reverend Frank Melville Jones, then Anglican Bishop of Lagos, with Reverend R A Wright as Chaplain.
The congregation in the early decades remained predominantly European, reflecting the colonial composition of Lagos’s government and commercial sectors. The last British Governor‑General of Nigeria, Sir James Robertson, was a member of the church, and anecdotal accounts from contemporary sources record that services often waited to begin until he was seated.
Congregational Change
During the mid‑twentieth century, the demographic composition of the congregation began to change. Nigerian worshippers, including senior civil servants and members of the legal profession, increasingly participated in services. Historical accounts identify individuals such as Madam Bisi Olaleye, who began worshipping at St Saviour’s as early as 1936, and Pa Akin Phillip Olaomo, a member since 1947, as representatives of this shift.
Clerical leadership also influenced congregational growth. During the tenure of Reverend J J Payne from 1962, the number of Nigerian worshippers increased substantially. Under his leadership, additional services such as the mid‑week communion, family services and bible study fellowships were introduced, contributing to deeper engagement from Nigerian members of the church.
Legal and Ecclesiastical Transition
The most significant institutional change in the church’s history occurred in 1991, when the St Saviour’s Church (Miscellaneous) Act 26 of 1991 came into effect. This statutory instrument repealed the earlier incorporation acts and abolished the church’s autonomous legal status. Under the provisions of the 1991 act, the church formerly known as St Saviour’s became a parish church within the Lagos Diocesan Synod of the Anglican Communion of Nigeria, administered according to the constitution of the diocesan synod.
Immediately after enactment of this law, the Anglican Diocese of Lagos changed the church’s name to Our Saviour’s Church. This change signified the end of the church’s separate statutory identity and its full integration into the structures of the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion.
Expansion and Contemporary Role
By the late twentieth century, continued growth in attendance and the needs of the congregation necessitated expansion of the church facilities. The foundation for an enlarged sanctuary with a capacity for 1 200 worshippers was laid in 1995, and the dedication of the enlarged and modernised building took place on 9 September 1999. The expanded church provided improved comfort and facilities for worship, and remains the main worship space to this day.
Our Saviour’s Church continues to be an active parish in the Anglican Diocese of Lagos, offering multiple services, ministries and fellowships to its congregation. Its ministries encompass prayer, bible study, youth and children’s programmes, social welfare and community engagement.
Historical Significance
Our Saviour’s Church is distinct in Nigerian Anglican history for several reasons. It was one of the few churches established by statute, rather than solely by ecclesiastical authority, and its legal incorporation in 1923 reflected a particular historical context of colonial administration and community organisation.
The 1991 legal transition marked an important phase in the decolonisation of church governance in Nigeria, as statutory autonomy was replaced by diocesan integration, aligning the church with the broader structures of the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion.
Architecturally, the survival of the original 1932 structure within the modern church complex provides a tangible connection to Lagos’s urban and spiritual history, linking colonial and post‑colonial eras.
The history of Our Saviour’s Church at Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos, is grounded in dated records, legislation and documented accounts. Founded in 1909 with its origins in the hall of King’s College, incorporated by statute in 1923, and consecrated in 1932, the church evolved from a colonial congregation to an integrated parish of the Anglican Diocese of Lagos following the 1991 act. The expanded church building, dedicated in 1999, stands as a centre of Anglican worship and community life on Lagos Island.
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Author’s Note
Our Saviour’s Church at Tafawa Balewa Square is a documented example of institutional continuity through legal change, demographic shift and ecclesiastical integration, reflecting broader patterns in Nigeria’s religious and urban history.
References
Our Saviour’s Church, TBS, Official History, About Us, osc‑tbs.org/about‑us, accessed 2025.
Jane O. Ejueyitchie‑Oroye, The old and the new: Ten decades of our Saviour’s Church, The Guardian Nigeria, 15 Nov 2017.
E Ekwo, Towards Giving Juristic Personality to Churches Under Common Law in Nigeria, DELSU Law Review, 2019.
