St Anne's Church, Hindsford facts for kids

Quick facts for kids St Anne's Church, Hindsford
St Anne's Church, Hindsford
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OS grid reference	SD 682 026
Location	Tyldesley Road, Hindsford, Atherton, Greater Manchester
Country	England
Denomination	Anglican
History
Status	Former parish church
Architecture
Functional status	Redundant
Heritage designation	Grade II
Designated	18 October 1991
Architect(s)	Austin and Paley
Architectural type	Church
Style	Gothic Revival
Groundbreaking	1889
Completed	1901
Construction cost	£9,000
Closed	1999
Specifications
Materials	Sandstone, Westmorland slate roofs

St Anne's Church is a historic building in Hindsford, Atherton, Greater Manchester, England. It used to be an Anglican parish church, but it is now a redundant building. This means it is no longer used for church services. The church is officially protected as a Grade II listed building. This shows it is an important building with special history and architecture.

History of St Anne's Church

Before this church was built, there was a smaller church called a "mission church" in the same area. This first church was also named after St Anne and was built on Swan Island in 1873. A mission church is a place where religious services are held for a local community, often before a larger church is built.

In 1884, Hindsford became its own parish. A parish is a local area that has its own church and priest. The foundation stone for the current St Anne's Church was laid in 1889. This means the first stone was put in place to start building.

The church was designed by famous architects named Austin and Paley from Lancaster. It was finished in 1901. Building the church cost about £9,000 at that time. This would be a lot more money today! The church could seat 450 people. The land for the church was given by Lord Lilford.

St Anne's Church stopped being used as a church on 1 November 1999. Later, between 2003 and 2004, the building was changed into apartments.

Architecture and Design

St Anne's Church is built from sandstone, which is a strong type of rock. Its roofs are made of Westmorland slate, a durable material. The church was designed in the Gothic Revival style. This style was popular in the 1800s and early 1900s. It copied the look of medieval Gothic churches, with pointed arches and tall windows.

The church building faces northwest-southeast. However, when describing churches, people often use "ritual orientation." This means they describe it as if the altar is at the east end, which is a traditional church layout.

The church has a main area called a nave with four sections, and smaller areas on the sides called north and south aisles. There is a porch on the south side where people enter. It also has a south transept, which is a part of the church that sticks out, making the building look like a cross from above.

The chancel is the area around the altar, and it has two sections. On the south side of the chancel, there is a tall tower and a vestry. A vestry is a room where the clergy (like priests) get ready for services.

The Tower

The church tower stands on a strong base called a plinth. It has diagonal buttresses, which are supports built into the walls to make them stronger. One of these buttresses goes up to a small, round tower called an octagonal stair turret. This turret likely contains a staircase.

The tower has openings for bells called bell openings. These openings have louvred slats, which help the sound of the bells travel out. The top of the tower has a parapet that looks like a castle wall, called "embattled." On top of the tower is a pointed, pyramid-shaped roof with a weathervane.

The windows of the church have special stone patterns called tracery. These patterns are in the Decorated style, which is known for its beautiful and complex designs.

More to Explore

• Listed buildings in Atherton, Greater Manchester
• List of ecclesiastical works by Austin and Paley (1895–1914)