- St Matthew's Church, Wigan
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St Matthew's Church, Wigan Location in Greater Manchester
St Matthew's Church, WiganCoordinates: 53°31′45″N 2°40′21″W / 53.5292°N 2.6725°W OS grid reference SD 555 038 Location Billinge Road, Highfield, Wigan, Greater Manchester Country England Denomination Anglican Website St Matthew, Highfield, Wigan History Dedication Saint Matthew Architecture Status Parish church Functional status Active Heritage designation Grade II* Designated 11 July 1983 Architect(s) Paley, Austin and Paley,
Austin and PaleyArchitectural type Church Style Gothic Revival Groundbreaking 1892 Completed 1910 Specifications Materials Sandstone, tiled roof Administration Parish St Matthew, Highfield Deanery Wigan Archdeaconry Warrington Diocese Liverpool Province York Clergy Vicar(s) Revd Bob Pearson Laity Reader Audrey Moss, Colin Hesketh Director of music Sue Gordon Churchwarden(s) Tony Jenks, Jeff McCann Parish administrator Sheila Highton St Matthew's Church, Wigan is located in Billinge Road, Highfield, Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Wigan, the archdeaconry of Warrington, and the diocese of Liverpool.[1] The church has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II* listed building.[2]
Contents
History
St Matthew's was built between 1892 and 1894, and designed by the Lancaster firm of architects, Paley, Austin and Paley. It was paid for by Colonel Henry Blundell, owner of the Pemberton Colliery, in memory of his wife.[3] The church was expanded and altered in 1910 by the successors in the practice, Austin and Paley[2]
Architecture
Exterior
The church is constructed in Runcorn red sandstone,[3] with a red tiled roof.[2] Its architectural style is Early English. The plan consists of a five-bay nave, a two-bay north aisle, a north porch, a five-bay south aisle, north and south transepts, and a single-bay chancel. Above the crossing is tower with a spire. Around the church are pilasters, and all the windows are lancets. The tower has two unequal stages and a northeast stair turret. Between the stages is a string course, and the upper stage contains two louvred bell openings on each side. The parapet is stepped at the corners, and the tower is surmounted by an octagonal spire with lucarnes.[2]
Interior
Inside the church are a two-bay north arcade and a five-bay south arcade. The north transept contains a Lady chapel, and in the south transept is the organ loft. On the south side of the chancel is a sedilia.[2] The furnishings were designed by the architects, including the reredos of 1917, the font, and the pulpit. The stained glass in the east window (from 1917), and in the north aisle and transept (from the 1920s) is by Hardmans. Also in the church are three windows designed by Harold Harvey, dating between 1976 and 1992.[3]
See also
- List of works by Paley, Austin and Paley
References
- ^ St Matthew, Highfield, Church of England, http://www.achurchnearyou.com/highfield-st-matthew/, retrieved 8 November 2011
- ^ a b c d e Church of St Matthew, Wigan (1384453). National Heritage List for England. English Heritage. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
- ^ a b c Pollard, Richard; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2006), Lancashire: Liverpool and the South-West, The Buildings of England, New Haven and London: Yale University Press, pp. 663–664, ISBN 0-300-10910-5
Categories:- Grade II* listed churches
- Grade II* listed buildings in Greater Manchester
- Church of England churches in Greater Manchester
- Anglican Diocese of Manchester
- Gothic Revival architecture in Greater Manchester
- Paley, Austin and Paley buildings
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