By William Tibben
The marriage of Rev Alfred E. Waters and Gwendoline Bowyer on the 3rd April 1924 at Bulli Methodist Church may not have occurred had the vagaries of unrequited love forced a different course of events.
This love story begins with the Bowyer family who were caretakers of Sandon Cottage, a rambling and decaying cottage of 27 rooms on the headland at the end of Point Street. The cottage was built by Sydney businessman, George Adams.
As members of the Methodist Church the Bowyers hosted probationary ministers who were assigned to the Bulli circuit to hone their preaching skills. One such probationary minister was a Rev Alfred E. Waters, who had been sent to Bulli Church for a longer period than usual because the resident minister at the time, Rev Bird, was gravely ill. The story goes that when he was about to begin his first service, he caught sight of the organist for that Sunday, Gwen Bowyer. He was smitten – a case of love at first sight.
So, his joy must have increased when he discovered that he would also be staying at Sandon Cottage, the residence where Gwen, along with the rest of the Bowyer family, lived.
However, his placement in Bulli was but temporary. He left for Narrabri. Buoyed by their developing affection, Alfred and Gwen promised each other to stay in touch through letter-writing.
Alfred wrote to Gwen but was increasingly worried when his letters were not answered. He decided to travel to Bulli where the problem was discovered. He boarded with a church family in Narrabri where the young daughter had fallen in love with Alfred. On discovering his relationship with Gwen in Bulli, she set about ending it by intercepting and destroying Gwen’s letters.
Once the misunderstanding was cleared up, the union of Gwen and Alfred was sealed one evening sitting in the lovely gardens at Sandon Point. Rev. Waters, in Greek, said to Gwen, “It is necessary for us to come to an understanding”. Gwen, who not having studied Greek could only guess his intention, decided to play it safe and said “Yes!” This marked the start of a long, happy marriage.
Work is taking place to repair stonework and restore the church’s stained-glass windows.
To find out more, drop by or visit bullichapel.org.au. Donations are tax deductible!
