St Luke's Church, Farnworth facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids St Luke's Church, Farnworth
St Luke's Church, Farnworth, from the south
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OS grid reference	SJ 516,877
Location	Farnworth, Widnes, Cheshire
Country	England
Denomination	Anglican
Website	Saint Luke, Farnworth
History
Status	Parish church
Dedication	Saint Luke
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Heritage designation	Grade II*
Designated	30 May 1963
Architect(s)	Paley, Austin and Paley
Architectural type	Church
Style	Gothic
Specifications
Materials	Red sandstone, slate roof
Administration
Parish	Farnworth
Deanery	Widnes
Archdeaconry	Warrington
Diocese	Liverpool
Province	York

St Luke's Church in Farnworth, Widnes, is a very old church in England. Farnworth used to be a village on its own, but now it's part of the town of Widnes in Cheshire. This church was built a long, long time ago, in the 1100s! It has many interesting historical items inside, like special paintings called hatchments and memorials for important people. St Luke's Church is a very important historical building, listed as Grade II*. This means it's a special building that needs to be protected. It is an active Anglican church, which means it's still used for services today.

History of St Luke's Church
Architecture of St Luke's Church
External Features of the Churchyard
The Legend of the Griffin
See also

History of St Luke's Church

Farnworth is a very old village. It is about 3 kilometers north of the River Mersey. It used to be in the county of Lancashire. Now, it is part of the town of Widnes in Cheshire.

Around the year 1180, a small church, or chapel, was built in Farnworth. It was named after St Wilfrid. People called it St Wilfrids-on-the-Hill. This chapel was a "chapel of ease." This meant it was a smaller church built to make it easier for people to attend services. It was for people who lived far from the main church in Prescot. The area it served included nearby places like Bold, Appleton, Cronton, Cuerdley, Ditton, and Penketh.

At first, Farnworth was part of the diocese of Lichfield. A diocese is an area managed by a bishop. Later, in 1541, big changes happened in England. Many monasteries were closed down. This was called the dissolution of the monasteries. The abbey in Chester became a cathedral. After this, Farnworth became part of the diocese of Chester. In 1859, the church was renamed and dedicated to St Luke. Then, in 1880, it became a parish church in the Anglican Diocese of Liverpool.

Important Supporters of the Church

Over the years, many people have helped the church with money and support. These people are called benefactors. One of the earliest supporters was Yorfrid. He was the first Baron of Widnes. A Baron is a type of noble. Later, the Bold family, who lived nearby in Bold, became the main supporters of the church for many centuries.

Changes to the Church Building Over Time

The church building has changed a lot over hundreds of years.

Around 1280 to 1300, a new section called the north aisle was added. An aisle is a passage along the side of a church.
Between 1360 and 1380, the south aisle was added. The church tower was also built around this time.
In 1406, the Bold Chantry was added. A chantry was a special chapel where prayers were said for the souls of certain people.
In 1431, the east end of the church was made longer.
In 1500, the Cuerdley chapel was added to the south side. Bishop William Smyth built this. He wanted his tenants from Cuerdley village to attend church safely. This was important because the bubonic plague was common then. It helped keep people from Farnworth and Cuerdley separate.

Victorian Restoration and Later Work

In 1855, a big "Victorian restoration" took place. This means the church was repaired and updated in the style popular during Queen Victoria's reign.

The nave (the main part of the church), the north aisle, and the Bold Chapel were rebuilt.
The east end of the chancel (the area around the altar) was repaired.
The north side of the church and the vestry (a room for clergy) were fixed.
A new roof was put on the nave.
Galleries (upper seating areas) were built.
The organ was moved to the west wall gallery.

This work was done by an architect named William Culshaw.

Farnworth became its own separate parish in 1859. The last major internal restoration happened in 1894–95.

The galleries were removed.
Plaster was taken off the walls.
Two new vestries were built on the north side of the chancel.
A new organ was put in.

This work was done by the architects Paley, Austin and Paley. It cost a lot of money, about £4,011 at that time.

Architecture of St Luke's Church

Outside the Church

The church is built from red sandstone. Its roof is made of slate. The church has a west tower (at the front), a main area called the nave with five sections, and a row of windows above the main arches called a clerestory. It also has north and south aisles, a south transept (a part that sticks out like the arms of a cross), and north and south porches. The chancel (the area near the altar) is narrower and not as tall as the nave. The Bold chapel takes up most of the north aisle. There are two vestries north of the chancel.

The tower has strong supports called buttresses at its corners. It has a curved window on the west side. There are smaller windows with louvers (slats) on all sides where the bells are. A clock face is on the south side. The clerestory windows are shaped like small pitched roofs. The tower, chancel, and transept have crenellations. These are like the battlements on a castle. The chancel also has pointed decorations called crocketted finials.

Inside the Church

The Baptismal font is where baptisms take place. It is shaped like an octagon and made from local sandstone. It is thought to be from around 1280. During the 1894–95 restoration, it was placed on a round base called a plinth. The altar is made from wood. This wood came from the old rood screen, which was taken down during the Protestant Reformation. A rood screen was a decorative screen that separated the nave from the chancel.

A screen under the tower arch is from the 1600s. A special pew (a church bench) behind the pulpit is dated 1607. On the walls of the nave, there are seven hatchments. These are special paintings on boards that show the coat of arms of a person who has died. These hatchments belong to the Bold family and date from 1762 to 1840. The lectern (where readings are given) and the pulpit (where sermons are preached) were added during the 1894–95 restoration.

The stained glass windows are beautiful.

In the north aisle, there is stained glass from 1876 made by Morris & Co.. It shows the story of the fiery furnace from the book of Daniel.
The glass in the east window is by Burlison and Grylls and is from 1891.
The glass in the west window and the east window in the transept are by Shrigley and Hunt.

In the chancel, there are memorials for John and Edward Atherton. They died in 1826 and 1820. Their memorial shows a sarcophagus (a stone coffin) in relief (a sculpture that stands out from a flat surface). This was made by T. Franceys and Spence of Liverpool. On the south wall, there is a pink marble tablet. It remembers the scientist Ferdinand Hurter, who died in 1898.

Bold Chapel

In the Bold chapel, the communion table is from the early 1600s. There is a fake bookcase in the chapel. This used to be a secret door! It was from the library of Bold Hall, around 1810. The monuments in this chapel are considered "one of the best collections in the county."

The oldest monument is a rough effigy (a statue of a person) of a knight. It is probably Richard Bold and dates from around 1602.
Other memorials include one for another Richard Bold, who died in 1635, and his wife.
There is a memorial for Richard Bold, who died in 1704. It has a decorative frame called a cartouche with small angel figures called cherubs.
A memorial for Peter Bold, who died in 1762, was made by B. Bromfield of Liverpool.
Another is for Anna Maria Bold, who died in 1813, by G. Bullock.
The memorial for Peter Patten Bold, from 1822, was made by Francis Chantry. It shows a woman kneeling over a stone stand.
The memorial for Mary, Princess Sapieha (1795–1824), was made in Rome by Pietro Tenerani. She died from tuberculosis (a serious illness) only two years after she got married.
Behind the altar, there is a white statue for Alice Houghton, dated 1852.

The organ in the church was built by Peter Concaher. It was repaired in 1986 by Reeves. The church has a ring of six bells. They were made in 1956 by John Taylor and Company.

External Features of the Churchyard

In the churchyard, there is a sundial. It used to be in the garden of Bold Hall. It was given to the church after the New Hall was taken down in 1899. There is also a stone column about 3 meters tall. This column is part of an old churchyard cross. In the southeast corner of the churchyard, there is an old bridewell. This was a small jail for holding people for a short time. It was built in 1827 from sandstone with a slate roof. It is also a Grade II listed building.

The Legend of the Griffin

There is a local legend about a griffin. A griffin is a mythical creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle. The story says that a griffin was scaring the people and animals in the area. The village blacksmith was brave and agreed to fight it. After a long battle, he won! He killed the griffin and became a hero to the people. He was given the name "The Bold." This legend is said to be how the Bold family got their name. The griffin can be seen on all the family's heraldic decorations, which are like their family symbols.