The building of Christ Church tower began in 1786 between the years of the American and French Revolutions. The church in those times stood almost alone in the fields about half a mile north of the township of North Shields at the junction of two important roads. The congregation of the parish church was determined to erect an impressive addition to their old church which had been consecrated in 1668 and to have a ring of bells to summon them to worship.

In 1785, following an auction of pews in the newly completed southwest extension to the church, the churchwardens found themselves with a surplus of £600. They decided that they wanted to spend this money on the erection of a steeple 25 feet square and 82 feet high to hold six bells

In a petition read out in church on the 23rd April 1786 it stated that the church had one bell "a very bad one" being an Old Ship Bell and that the Parish was "wide and extensive" and that much the greater part of the Parish are at such a distance that the present bell cannot be heard".

The petition ended by stating that a steeple would be "highly ornamental" and that it would cost £500 to erect the steeple and £283 for the six bells. The extra £183 would be raised, they reasoned, through the auctioning of the pews which would be placed in the gallery on the first floor of the new steeple

On hearing the petition a number of influential parishioners presented a list of objections stating that, amongst other things, part of the £600 profit had been promised to the Vicar as an increase to his stipend, that the proposed tower had been designed by unskilled people, that one large bell in an arch or cupola would be equally well heard throughout the parish and that the money would be better spent on the education of poor children in the town and neighbourhood. The objections were rejected and a Faculty was granted.