The foundation stone was laid on 1 June 1848 by Augustus Short, the first Anglican Bishop of Adelaide, and the church was consecrated in 1849.

The church building is in the Romanesque Revival architectural style and was built under the direction of architects Henry Stuckey and William Weir.

It is built of local limestone mined from Palmer Place, with slate roof tiles from Willunga.

He also designed two buildings at St Peter's College, and Pirie Street Wesleyan Church.

[13] It still had faults: it was so badly affected by weather that in winter it took six kerosene lamps burning for an hour before it would play.