Summary : The present Roman Catholic Church was built in 1925-1930 and was designed by the architect J. S. Brocklesby who was a popular early 20th century Roman Catholic Church architect. The first Catholic chapel was built on the site in 1822 along with an accompanying presbytery (priest's house) and the cast iron gates to the churchyard. The church is notably regarded for housing the shrine of the Holy Hand of St Edmund Arrowsmith who was from Haydock.The church is Romanesque in style, and its design was influenced by the Romanesque churches of the south of France. The church is built of Darley Dale and Parbold stone and features a nave, chancel, ambulatory, north and south facing chapels and a north-west turret. The presbytery is connected to the building on the south side and is built of brick with stone dressings and a slate roof. The building is two storeys high and its entrance features an inset Truscan door-case. The interior of the church features a three bay nave with arcades on quatrefoil piers and there are transverse arches on corbels in the ambulatory. The vaulted roof is stencilled and there is a round headed recess which features reredos painting over the altar. The stained glass in the church is by Harry Clarke and is dated to 1930-31. The church is also a good example of the carvings on its corbels and arches which was done by the Howe Brothers. The church is a good example of a Romanesque style Catholic Church as well as other internal features such as the stained glass work of Harry Clarke, a prominent figure in the Art and Crafts movement. In 2008 the church was an active centre of parish activity and it is visited as a Shrine. |
More information : The present Roman Catholic Church of St Oswald and St Edmund Arrowsmith was built in 1925-1930 in Liverpool Road, Ashton-in-Makerfield and was designed by the architect J. S. Brocklesby who was a popular early 20th century Roman Catholic Church architect who also designed the Roman Catholic Church of St George Derby (1920) and The Roman Catholic Church of St Augustine Nottingham (1923). The first Catholic chapel was built on the site in 1822 along with an accompanying presbytery (priests house) and the cast iron gates to the churchyard. The present church was built on the site of the old one and was opened in September 1930 and it is claimed that local labour was used to build it to provide relief work during the Depression. The church is notably regarded for housing the shrine of the Holy Hand of St Edmund Arrowsmith who was from Haydock. He was martyred at Lancaster in 1628, and after he had been hung, drawn and quartered, had one of his hands cut off by a Catholic worshipper to save as a relic. The hand is now preserved in a silver casket in the church and has been revered as a holy relic for over two centuries. The church is Romanesque in style, and its design was influenced by the Romanesque churches of the south of France. The church is built of Darley Dale and Parbold stone and features a nave, chancel, ambulatory, north and south facing chapels and a north-west turret. The west front of the church has a corbel table and a large arch of three orders enclosing a round headed window and entrance of three orders. A relief of the coronation of the Virgin is located in the tympanum. There are seven bays in the nave which has a clerestory with a corbel table. The presbytery is connected to the building on the south side and is built of brick with stone dressings and a slate roof. The building is two storeys high and its entrance features an inset Truscan doorcase. The interior of the church features a three bay nave with arcades on quatrefoil piers and there are transverse arches on corbels in the ambulatory. The vaulted roof is stencilled and there is a round headed recess which features reredos painting over the altar. The stained glass in the church is by Harry Clarke and is dated to 1930-31, who was a leading figure in the Irish Arts and Crafts movement and was a notable stained glass artist. The chancel has an arcaded rail and marble altar and there is also a wooden altar in cyma form that is from the former chapel on the site that was built in 1822. The church is also a good example of the carvings on its corbels and arches which was done by the Howe Brothers. The church is a good example of a Romanesque style Catholic Church as well as other internal features such as the stained glass work of Harry Clarke, a prominent figure in the Art and Crafts movement. The church, presbytery and the gates and gate piers to the churchyard are grade II listed accordingly. In 2008 the church was an active centre of parish activity and it is visited as a Shrine. (1)
The National Grid Reference for this building is: SJ5756498906 (2)
The Roman Catholic Church of St Oswald and St Edmund Arrowsmith is a grade II listed building. For further details on the designation see the statutory data. (3)
At the time of compiling this record in 2012, access to information on the designation noted in source 3 above is available via the National Heritage List for England. (4)
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