Holy Trinity Church, Warrington facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Holy Trinity Church, Warrington
Holy Trinity Church, Warrington
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OS grid reference	SJ 606,882
Location	Warrington, Cheshire
Country	England
Denomination	Anglican
Churchmanship	Evangelical
Website	Holy Trinity, Warrington
History
Status	Parish church
Dedication	Trinity
Consecrated	1760
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Heritage designation	Grade II*
Designated	6 December 1949
Architectural type	Church
Style	Georgian
Groundbreaking	1758
Specifications
Materials	Sandstone front and tower Brick with stone dressings at rear
Administration
Parish	Holy Trinity, Warrington
Deanery	Warrington
Archdeaconry	Warrington
Diocese	Liverpool
Province	York

Holy Trinity Church is a beautiful old church located in the heart of Warrington, a town in Cheshire, England. It's a very important historical building, officially listed as Grade II*. This means it's a special building that needs to be protected. It's an active Anglican parish church, which means it's a local church for the community. It belongs to the Anglican Diocese of Liverpool.

History of Holy Trinity Church

A smaller church, called Trinity Chapel, was first built on this spot in 1708. It was like a smaller church built to help the main parish church, St Elphin's, which was getting too crowded. Peter Legh of Lyme Park built it as a place for prayer.

By the 1750s, this chapel was also too small for everyone who wanted to attend. So, in 1758, people started collecting money to build a brand new church. This new church was officially opened and blessed in 1760. The church's design looks a lot like the work of a famous architect named James Gibbs. However, he was ill at the time, so it's believed one of his assistants actually designed it.

In 1862, a clock tower was added to the west side of the church. This tower was designed by W. P. Coxon, who was the town's surveyor. Interestingly, this tower actually belongs to the town of Warrington, not just the church itself.

Over the years, the church has had many updates. In 1974, the south side of the church was changed to create a new room called the Garven Room, a serving area for food, a small room for clergy (called a vestry), and toilets.

By the 1970s, the church roof had some serious damage from things like wet and dry rot, woodworm, and death watch beetle. These are all types of damage that can happen to wood. So, the roof was replaced between 1978 and 1979.

In 1990, the old pipe organ was too broken to fix. It was replaced with a modern Makin electronic organ. The west end of the church was changed in 1988 to create a new entrance lobby. Then, in 1997, the east end was updated, adding another room and making the special area around the altar (called the sanctuary) bigger. Finally, in 1999, the clock on the tower was fixed up by Warrington Borough Council as a special project for the new millennium.

Architecture and Design

Outside the Church

Holy Trinity Church is built in the Georgian style, which was popular in the 1700s. The front of the church is made from sandstone, while the back is built with brick and decorated with stone. The stonework at the front has a special rough, textured look called "rusticated."

The front of the church has four main sections. At the very bottom is a strong, textured base called a plinth. Above that are windows, and on the west side, there's a fancy doorway in a style called Doric. Next, there's an upper section of windows with tall, decorative columns called Ionic pilasters. At the very top, you'll see a decorative ledge called a cornice and a plain wall section called a parapet. On the east wall, there's a large, grand window known as a Palladian window. The tower is made of cast iron and has both eight-sided and square sections, topped with a slim, curved roof called an ogee-cap.

Inside the Church

Inside Holy Trinity Church, you'll find balconies, or "galleries," on three sides. The decorative screen behind the altar, called the reredos, is a memorial from 1920 that remembers those who died in the First World War. It was made by Edward Carter Preston. The table used for communion is in a fancy style called Rococo and actually comes from the very first chapel that was on this site.

The baptismal font, where baptisms take place, is an 18th-century stone stand called a baluster. It has a special cover made in the Arts and Crafts style. The pulpit, where sermons are given, also dates from the 18th century, though it has been changed a bit. Most of the original box pews (the enclosed seating areas) are still there, though many have had their doors removed.

On the wall of the west balcony, there's a painting of the Holy Family (Jesus, Mary, and Joseph). This painting is a copy from around 1776 by James Cranke, based on an original painting by Andrea del Sarto that is now in the Louvre museum in Paris. The beautiful brass chandelier (a hanging light fixture) used to hang in St Stephen's Chapel in the Palace of Westminster, which is where the House of Commons meets. It was saved after a fire and given to Holy Trinity Church in 1801.

See also

• Grade I and II* listed buildings in Warrington
• Listed buildings in Warrington (unparished area)