St Mary's Church, Harrogate

St Mary’s Church, Harrogate is a Grade II* listed parish church in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England.[1] It is now known as Kairos Church.

St Mary’s Church, Harrogate
St Mary’s Church, Westcliffe Grove, Harrogate
St Mary’s Church, Harrogate
CountryUnited Kingdom
DenominationChurch of England
ChurchmanshipEvangelical
Website
Architecture
Heritage designationGrade II* listed
Architect(s)Walter Tapper
Completed1916
Administration
ParishHarrogate
DioceseLeeds

History

The first church erected had its foundation stone laid on 4 September 1822. It was a plain building, funded by a grant from the Commissioners of the Million Act. It was erected in 1824, and consecrated in 1825. It had 800 seats and was assigned as a parish in 1830. It was declared unsafe in 1903.[2]

The replacement church was built at the current site in 1916 to designs by the architect Walter Tapper.[3] It was constructed in the 14th century English gothic style.

In 2007 the church closed as a parish church because of maintenance problems. It was revived by Mark Carey as a fresh expression of church, still within the Church of England, but now serving the whole of Harrogate. It was renamed as Kairos Church and now meets in Westcliffe Hall, opposite the old St Mary's building and has a vibrant congregation.

The St Mary's Building is now owned by Shaw and Jagger Architects.

Lofthouse Memorial

The stone vaulted south chapel contains a tomb and memorial to Richard Chapman Lofthouse (1832–1907) Deputy Surgeon General of the British Army who founded the church. He served in the Crimean War and the Indian Mutiny.

Bells

The tower has a ring of 8 bells in the key of F dating from 1916 by Taylors of Loughborough. The tenor bell is 16 cwt.

Organ

The first organ was installed in 1895 by James Jepson Binns. This was replaced in 1919 with an instrument by Harrison and Harrison. Details of the organ can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register.[4]

Organists
  • J E W Lord 1894 - ???? (formerly organist of Bridlington Priory)
  • J. C. Stephenson, ARCO ca.1912[5]
  • A Beaumont, FRCO 1915 - 1946
  • Harold Mills circa 1954?

References
  1. http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-329875-church-of-st-mary-north-yorkshire
  2. Yorkshire Evening Post - Monday 5 January 1903
  3. The Buildings of England. North Yorkshire. Nikolaus Pevsner.
  4. http://www.npor.org.uk/cgi-bin/Rsearch.cgi?Fn=Rsearch&rec_index=N02923
  5. Dictionary of Organs and Organists, 1912

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