St Luke's Church, Holmes Chapel facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Luke's Church, Holmes Chapel |
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St Luke's Church, Holmes Chapel, from the south
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 St Luke's Church, Holmes Chapel
Location in Cheshire
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| 53°12′07″N 2°21′27″W / 53.2020°N 2.3575°W | |
| OS grid reference | SJ 761 673 |
| Location | Holmes Chapel, Cheshire |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Anglican |
| Website | St Luke's, Holmes Chapel |
| History | |
| Status | Parish church |
| Dedication | St Luke |
| Consecrated | 1430 |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Heritage designation | Grade I |
| Designated | 14 February 1967 |
| Architectural type | Church |
| Style | Gothic |
| Completed | 1705 |
| Specifications | |
| Materials | Tower sandstone Nave and chancel timber framed, enclosed in brick Welsh slate roof |
| Administration | |
| Parish | Church Hulme |
| Deanery | Congleton |
| Archdeaconry | Macclesfield |
| Diocese | Chester |
| Province | York |
St Luke's Church is a very old and important church located in Holmes Chapel, a village in Cheshire, England. You can find it where the A50 road meets the A535 road. This church is officially recognized as a Grade I listed building. This means it's a really special and historic place! It is an active Anglican parish church, which means it's a local church for the community. It belongs to the diocese of Chester.
Contents
A Look at St Luke's Church History
There has been a church building on this spot since the 1200s. The church you see today started around 1430. It was first built with a wooden frame, and it had a tall, stone tower on the west side. This tower was built in a style called Perpendicular Gothic, which means it had tall, straight lines.
Later, in the early 1700s, the main parts of the church (the nave and chancel) were covered with bricks. Around the same time, a special viewing area called a west gallery was added. This was a gift from a person named Thomas Hall. The church has been repaired and updated several times over the years, including in 1839, 1931, and 1950.
What Does St Luke's Church Look Like?
Outside the Church
The church tower is made of strong sandstone. The main parts of the church, the nave and chancel, are made of brick. The roof is covered with Welsh slate. The church design includes a large main area (the nave) with four sections, and smaller areas on the north and south sides called aisles.
The chancel, which is the part near the altar, has a lower roof. There's also a small room called a vestry on its north side. The tower has a main entrance door on the west side. Above this door, there's a window with two lights. Higher up, there's a small square window for the bell ringers. The belfry windows also have two lights.
The very top of the tower has a castle-like edge. You can also spot gargoyles at each corner, which are carved stone figures. On the north and south sides of the tower, there are diamond-shaped clock faces. The windows along the aisles have two levels and rounded tops.
Inside the Church
When a plaster ceiling was removed, the original wooden roof from the 1400s was revealed. This roof has special wooden supports called arch braced trusses and cambered tie beams.
There are oak wood galleries from around 1705. One is at the west end and holds the organ. The other is along the south aisle and has special box pews, which are like private seating areas. Near the communion rail, there's a carved oak crest dated 1622.
The stone font, used for baptisms, is from 1890. The wooden pulpit, where sermons are given, is also from the 1800s. You can see memorials on the walls. The brass candelabrum, a large candle holder, is from 1708. It's the oldest one in any church in Cheshire!
The beautiful stained glass in the east window was made in 1921 by Horatio Walter Lonsdale. There are also other monuments inside the church from 1715, 1801, and 1836.
The church organ was first built in 1851 by Richard Jackson. It was rebuilt around 1900 and again in 1972. The church has a set of six bells. Four of these bells were made by Richard Sanders in 1709. The other two bells are from 1858 and were made by G. Mears at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry.
The church's official records, called parish registers, start from 1613. The records of the churchwardens (people who help manage the church) begin in 1812.
Outside the Church Grounds
The church has an extra churchyard area. In this area, there is a war grave for a soldier who fought in World War I.
Want to Learn More?
- Grade I listed buildings in Cheshire East
- Grade I listed churches in Cheshire
- Listed buildings in Holmes Chapel
