St Margaret's Church, Burnage facts for kids

St Margaret's Church is a special old church located in Burnage, a part of Manchester, England. It's an active Anglican church, meaning it's part of the Church of England. This church is considered important enough to be a Grade II listed building, which means it's protected because of its history and architecture. It was given this special status on February 9, 2012.

History of St Margaret's Church

The church was built between 1874 and 1875. It was designed by a famous architectural firm called Paley and Austin from Lancaster. The church was officially opened and blessed, a process called consecrated, on March 15, 1875, by the Bishop of Manchester.

When it was first built, the church had a main open area called a nave, a special area near the altar called a chancel, and a side section known as a south aisle. It could seat about 200 people. The land for the church was kindly donated by Lord Egerton of Tatton Park.

Later, in 1881–82, the same architects added a small tower for bells, called a bellcote. They also added a room for the clergy (church leaders) called a vestry, a decorated screen behind the altar called a reredos, and a screen for the organ in 1885.

In 1901, the architects who took over the firm, Austin and Paley, added another side section, the north aisle. More work was done on the front part of the church between 1925 and 1926. During this time, a baptistery (a place for baptisms) and two porches were added. In 1998, some of the older wooden furniture, like the pulpit (where sermons are given) and the choir stalls, were removed. The traditional long benches, called pews, were replaced with chairs.

Architecture and Design

St Margaret's Church is built from sandstone, a type of rock. The church's layout includes a three-part nave (main area), north and south aisles (side sections), a south porch (entrance), a baptistery, and a chancel (area near the altar). The style of the building is called Decorated Gothic, which means it has lots of fancy details and pointed arches.

Experts who wrote about the Buildings of England described the inside of the church as "well-proportioned," meaning everything fits together nicely. They also noted its "single-framed roof."

The reredos, the decorated screen behind the altar, was put in place in 1885. The special memorials for the World Wars were designed to match this reredos. Their messages are written on small tiles with gold patterns.

The church has beautiful stained glass windows. One window in the south aisle from 1894 shows three important figures: Faith, Hope, and Charity. In the south wall of the chancel, there's a window from around 1920 by Walter J. Pearce. Another window in the east of the south aisle is from about 1950 by T. F. Wilford.

A very interesting window from 1950 is in the baptistery. It shows Scouts, Guides, Cubs, and Brownies, which is quite unique for a church window! The church's organ, which has two manuals (keyboards), was built in 1973 by George Sixsmith and Son. It replaced an older, larger organ.

See also

• Listed buildings in Manchester-M19
• List of ecclesiastical works by Paley and Austin