St George�s is located in a solitary position on the top of Portland. Whatever direction you approach it from it is an impressive sight.The church is entered through a side door.It is a simple cruciform design,with a chancel at the east and vestry and bell tower at the west.The pulpits are in the centre with all the seating facing towards them.There are galleries on three sides,except the east,and they are filled with wooden box pews.It is very open and light with mainly plain glass in the windows,except for one of stained glass over the altar. Inside During the Victorian period many people believed that churches should be returned to their medieval roots. Galleries:The balconies are shown in old pictures as being reached from an outside staircase on the north side of the church.The east balcony was removed in 1850 and in order to make up the lost seats the north,south and possibly west gal- leries were extended.Shortly before the church was closed it was the custom for the girls to sit in the south balcony and the boys in the north. Pews:The freehold of the pews or the seats in them were originally sold to individuals to help raise money for the building of the church and its running costs.The population of Portland rose substan- tially during the 19th century,and when people died they left their seat to the family - sometimes several members.By 1900 the ownership had been so sub-divided in some cases that people had a sixth of a seat! The sale of pews had finished by 1917 when the new church of All Saints was consecrated.One other possible reason for building a com- pletely new church was that all the pews between the pulpits and apse had their backs to the altar dating from the time when a sermon was more important than the sacrament. The then Bishop of Salisbury said they must be turned round.This would have meant a complete refur- bishment and,as they were private property,he had no authority to give such an instruction.Originally there were 620 seats of which only 20 were free;there are now about 580.The Rector (north) and the Governor of the Island (south) occupied the large pews at the east end of the church,respectively. Organ:This was just an outer case by the 1970s.The lead pipes had been stolen and the wooden ones destroyed by vandals whilst the church was abandoned. Vestry:The instructions for tolling the bell have been restored by the Friends.The blank plaque over the door (which we think showed the new rules for tolling the bells) is a repeat of the one in the Apse show- ing the original church benefactors. The bell has been rehung and can be rung. Timeline 1733 Decision made to replace the old church of St Andrew�s with a new one 1754 Foundation stone laid, church finished about ten years later 1766 Consecrated by the Bishop of Bristol 1776 Thomas Gilbert, the architect and builder died 1777 Single bell cast by Pack and Chapman of Whitechapel 1798 The roof was completely replaced 1849 - 52 Victorian re-ordering and re-fit 1849 Pulpit and reading desk added 1851 National census showed the church had a total of 642 seats 1878 Stained glass in the east window was given by a parishioner 1917 Parish church of All Saints in Easton consecrated - this meant services at St George�s became less frequent 1939 - 45 Bomb damage 1968 Small group of local people began to take care of the church and formed the Friends of St George�s 1970 Declared redundant 1971 Vested in the Redundant Churches Fund, now The Churches Conservation Trust.