St John the Evangelist's Church, Weston
Encyclopedia
St John the Evangelist's Church is in Weston
, once a separate village and now part of the town of Runcorn
, Cheshire
, England. The church has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade II* listed building. It is an active Anglican
parish church
in the diocese of Chester
, the archdeaconry of Chester and the deanery of Frodsham. Its design has been described as "bold and original".
to Runcorn parish church
. In order to raise funds to build the church, its choirboys wrote thousands of letters to choristers and choirboys of churches and cathedrals throughout the country. This initiative aroused the interest of many people, and over 5,000 donations were received from people in all walks of life. Because of this, it is sometimes known as "the choirboys' church". The tower was added in 1900 at a cost of approximately £700 (£ as of ). A clock costing about £60 made by J. B. Joyce
of Whitchurch
was added to the tower in 1901. St John's became a separate parish in 1931.
In 1998 an automated winding system was added to the clock, also made by Messrs. Joyce, costing £3,250.
with Welsh slate
roofs. Its plan consists of an embraced west tower, a four-bay
nave
with a narrow north aisle
, a south porch approached by a flight of steps, and a chancel
which is higher than the nave. The organ chamber is to the north of the chancel and underneath the chancel are vestries. It has a "very short, very powerful west tower with short broach spire
", with one set of lucarne
s. Te church has two massive west buttress
es and a shallow buttress to the south. On the west side is a two-light window above which is a clock face. On each side are two-light bell openings.
is polygonal and includes a panel depicting the Crucifixion
. The font
is also stone and is octagonal. In the south wall are two stained glass windows. The one to the west depicts Isaiah
in a single panel and was made by L. A. Pownall of Falmouth
. The other window has four panels depicting Joshua
, Saint George
, Saint Alban
and Gideon; it was made by Percy Bacon of London. The east window depicts the Crucifixion and is by C. E. Kempe
. Only one of the windows in the north wall contains stained glass. It depicts two angels; the designed and maker are unknown. The west wall contains a window to the memory of Rev Frank Cartwright, vicar
from 1963 to 1968. It contains motifs relating to the Diocese of Worcester
where Rev Cartwright was trained, including a figure of Wulfstan of Worcester, and the Diocese of Chester
, including a figure of Saint Werburgh
. The organ was built by A. Young in 1898 and rebuilt by the Jardine Organ Company in 1981. In the vestry is a framed letter from Robert Baden-Powell
, posted from South Africa on 12 August 1900, congratulating the boys of Weston Village for forming an Anti-Smoking Society.
Weston, Halton
Weston or Weston Village is a settlement in the Halton unitary authority of Cheshire, England. Formerly a separate village, it is now part of the town of Runcorn....
, once a separate village and now part of the town of Runcorn
Runcorn
Runcorn is an industrial town and cargo port within the borough of Halton in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. In 2009, its population was estimated to be 61,500. The town is on the southern bank of the River Mersey where the estuary narrows to form Runcorn Gap. Directly to the north...
, Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, England. The church has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade II* listed building. It is an active Anglican
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
in the diocese of Chester
Diocese of Chester
The Diocese of Chester is a Church of England diocese in the Province of York based in Chester, covering the county of Cheshire in its pre-1974 boundaries...
, the archdeaconry of Chester and the deanery of Frodsham. Its design has been described as "bold and original".
History
The church was built between 1897 and 1898 to a design by Douglas & Fordham at a cost of over £5,000 (£ as of ). It was initially a chapel of easeChapel of ease
A chapel of ease is a church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently....
to Runcorn parish church
All Saints Church, Runcorn
All Saints Church, Runcorn is the parish church of Runcorn, Cheshire, England. It is sited on the south bank of the River Mersey overlooking Runcorn Gap. The church has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II* listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese...
. In order to raise funds to build the church, its choirboys wrote thousands of letters to choristers and choirboys of churches and cathedrals throughout the country. This initiative aroused the interest of many people, and over 5,000 donations were received from people in all walks of life. Because of this, it is sometimes known as "the choirboys' church". The tower was added in 1900 at a cost of approximately £700 (£ as of ). A clock costing about £60 made by J. B. Joyce
JB Joyce & Co
JB Joyce & Co, clockmakers, were founded in Shropshire in England. The company claim to be the oldest clock manufacturer in the world, originally established in 1690, and has been part of the Smith of Derby Group since 1965...
of Whitchurch
Whitchurch, Shropshire
Whitchurch is a market town in Shropshire, England on the border between England and Wales. It is the oldest continuously inhabited town in Shropshire. According to the 2001 Census, the population of the town is 8,673, with a more recent estimate putting the population of the town at 8,934...
was added to the tower in 1901. St John's became a separate parish in 1931.
In 1998 an automated winding system was added to the clock, also made by Messrs. Joyce, costing £3,250.
Exterior
The church is built from local red sandstoneSandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
with Welsh slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
roofs. Its plan consists of an embraced west tower, a four-bay
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
with a narrow north aisle
Aisle
An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of seats on both sides or with rows of seats on one side and a wall on the other...
, a south porch approached by a flight of steps, and a chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
which is higher than the nave. The organ chamber is to the north of the chancel and underneath the chancel are vestries. It has a "very short, very powerful west tower with short broach spire
Broach spire
A broach spire is a type of spire, a tall pyramidal or conical structure usually on the top of a tower or a turret. A broach spire starts on a square base and is carried up to a tapering octagonal spire by means of triangular faces....
", with one set of lucarne
Lucarne
A lucarne is a small dormer window that is built on a spire or roof during the Gothic and Romanesque time period....
s. Te church has two massive west buttress
Buttress
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall...
es and a shallow buttress to the south. On the west side is a two-light window above which is a clock face. On each side are two-light bell openings.
Interior
The stone pulpitPulpit
Pulpit is a speakers' stand in a church. In many Christian churches, there are two speakers' stands at the front of the church. Typically, the one on the left is called the pulpit...
is polygonal and includes a panel depicting the Crucifixion
Crucifixion of Jesus
The crucifixion of Jesus and his ensuing death is an event that occurred during the 1st century AD. Jesus, who Christians believe is the Son of God as well as the Messiah, was arrested, tried, and sentenced by Pontius Pilate to be scourged, and finally executed on a cross...
. The font
Baptismal font
A baptismal font is an article of church furniture or a fixture used for the baptism of children and adults.-Aspersion and affusion fonts:...
is also stone and is octagonal. In the south wall are two stained glass windows. The one to the west depicts Isaiah
Isaiah
Isaiah ; Greek: ', Ēsaïās ; "Yahu is salvation") was a prophet in the 8th-century BC Kingdom of Judah.Jews and Christians consider the Book of Isaiah a part of their Biblical canon; he is the first listed of the neviim akharonim, the later prophets. Many of the New Testament teachings of Jesus...
in a single panel and was made by L. A. Pownall of Falmouth
Falmouth, Cornwall
Falmouth is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It has a total resident population of 21,635.Falmouth is the terminus of the A39, which begins some 200 miles away in Bath, Somerset....
. The other window has four panels depicting Joshua
Joshua
Joshua , is a minor figure in the Torah, being one of the spies for Israel and in few passages as Moses's assistant. He turns to be the central character in the Hebrew Bible's Book of Joshua...
, Saint George
Saint George
Saint George was, according to tradition, a Roman soldier from Syria Palaestina and a priest in the Guard of Diocletian, who is venerated as a Christian martyr. In hagiography Saint George is one of the most venerated saints in the Catholic , Anglican, Eastern Orthodox, and the Oriental Orthodox...
, Saint Alban
Saint Alban
Saint Alban was the first British Christian martyr. Along with his fellow saints Julius and Aaron, Alban is one of three martyrs remembered from Roman Britain. Alban is listed in the Church of England calendar for 22 June and he continues to be venerated in the Anglican, Catholic, and Orthodox...
and Gideon; it was made by Percy Bacon of London. The east window depicts the Crucifixion and is by C. E. Kempe
Charles Eamer Kempe
Charles Eamer Kempe was a well-known Victorian stained glass designer. After attending Twyford School, he studied for the priesthood at Pembroke College, Oxford, but it became clear that his severe stammer would be an impediment to preaching...
. Only one of the windows in the north wall contains stained glass. It depicts two angels; the designed and maker are unknown. The west wall contains a window to the memory of Rev Frank Cartwright, vicar
Vicar
In the broadest sense, a vicar is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior . In this sense, the title is comparable to lieutenant...
from 1963 to 1968. It contains motifs relating to the Diocese of Worcester
Anglican Diocese of Worcester
The Diocese of Worcester forms part of the Province of Canterbury in England.The diocese was founded in around 679 by St Theodore of Canterbury at Worcester to minister to the kingdom of the Hwicce, one of the many Anglo Saxon petty-kingdoms of that time...
where Rev Cartwright was trained, including a figure of Wulfstan of Worcester, and the Diocese of Chester
Diocese of Chester
The Diocese of Chester is a Church of England diocese in the Province of York based in Chester, covering the county of Cheshire in its pre-1974 boundaries...
, including a figure of Saint Werburgh
Werburgh
Werburh or Wærburh is an English saint and the patron saint of Chester....
. The organ was built by A. Young in 1898 and rebuilt by the Jardine Organ Company in 1981. In the vestry is a framed letter from Robert Baden-Powell
Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell
Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, Bt, OM, GCMG, GCVO, KCB , also known as B-P or Lord Baden-Powell, was a lieutenant-general in the British Army, writer, and founder of the Scout Movement....
, posted from South Africa on 12 August 1900, congratulating the boys of Weston Village for forming an Anti-Smoking Society.
See also
- List of listed buildings in Runcorn (urban area)
- List of new churches by John Douglas