St Thomas' Church, Stockton Heath

St Thomas' Church, Stockton Heath
St Thomas' Church, Stockton Heath, from the southeast
St Thomas' Church, Stockton Heath
Location in Cheshire
Coordinates: 53°22′20″N 2°34′57″W / 53.3723°N 2.5825°W / 53.3723; -2.5825
OS grid reference SJ 614 864
Location Stockton Heath, Warrington, Cheshire
Country England
Denomination Anglican
Website St Thomas' and St Mary Magdalene's
History
Status Parish church
Dedication St Thomas
Architecture
Functional status Active
Heritage designation Grade II
Designated 23 December 1983
Architect(s) E. G. Paley
Architectural type Church
Style Gothic Revival
Completed 1868
Specifications
Materials Sandstone,
Westmorland slate roofs
Administration
Parish St Thomas, Stockton Heath
Deanery Great Budworth
Archdeaconry Chester
Diocese Chester
Province York
Clergy
Vicar(s) Rev Michael Ridley
Assistant priest(s) Rev Monica Thomson
Laity
Churchwarden(s) Lynda Heesom & Peter Banyard

St Thomas' Church is in Stockton Heath, to the south of Warrington, Cheshire, England. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building,[1] and is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Chester, the archdeaconry of Chester and the deanery of Great Budworth.[2]

History

The present church was built in 1868 on the site of a former church that had been erected in 1838.[1] It was designed by the Lancaster architect E. G. Paley, the main benefactor being Sir Gilbert Greenall. The tower was added later.[3] A tolling bell weighing just over a tonne was donated to the church by John Crosfield (son of Joseph Crosfield) in 1883 in memory of his wife.[4] This bell was removed from the church tower in January 2016[5] and is currently the focus of a fundraising campaign by Warrington Civic Society with the aim of returning it to the town.[6]. A ring of 8 bells from St. John's , Bollington were given to St . Thomas' as we had room to hang them. A further 2 bells were donated to make a ring of 10.

Architecture

It is constructed in pinkish-red sandstone with Westmorland slate roofs. Its plan consists of a four-bay nave with a south aisle under a parallel ridged roof, a south porch, a north transept, a north vestry, a two-bay chancel and a west tower. The tower is in four stages with an octagonal southeast turret and an embattled parapet.[1]

The chancel is decorated with richly coloured patterned tilework and the reredos is of marble and embossed patterned tiles.[1] The organ was built around 1880 by Young and Sons and rebuilt in 1963 by Rushworth and Dreaper of Liverpool.[7]

External features

The churchyard contains the war graves of 31 service personnel, 17 from World War I and 14 from World War II.[8]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Historic England, "Church of St Thomas, Stockton Heath (1135939)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 10 June 2012
  2. ↑ St Thomas, Stockton Heath, Church of England, retrieved 27 January 2011
  3. ↑ Brandwood, Geoff; Austin, Tim; Hughes, John; Price, James (2012), The Architecture of Sharpe, Paley and Austin, Swindon: English Heritage, p. 222, ISBN 978-1-84802-049-8
  4. ↑ "Civic Society bidding to keep church bell dating back to 1883 in town". Warrington Guardian. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
  5. ↑ "Bid to keep historic church bell in Warrington". Warrington Worldwide. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
  6. ↑ "Griff Rhys Jones backing campaign to save 130 year old Stockton Heath church bell". Wire FM. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
  7. ↑ Stockton Heath, St. Thomas, British Institute of Organ Studies, retrieved 17 August 2008
  8. ↑ STOCKTON HEATH (ST. THOMAS) CHURCHYARD, Commonwealth War Graves Commission, retrieved 3 February 2013
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