Hebden Bridge: St John
Overview
Grid reference: SD 993 273
The church is an unusually late example of an essay in the simplified Perpendicular style which was often used in the first two decades of the 20th century. It consists essentially of one long rectangular vessel comprising nave and chancel under a single roof ridge, with tall two-light clerestory windows with panel tracery to light the nave and small passage aisles below them, lit by pairs of rectangular lights in each bay.
Visiting and facilities
Building is closed for worship
Building
Ground Plan Description and Dimensions
Ground plan:
Nave of six bays with aisles and clerestory; south-west porch; chancel with south transeptal organ-chamber over a vestry and south staircase leading down to rooms below the chancel.
Description of Archaeology and History
The church was designed by J.H. Sutcliffe of Hebden Bridge, whose design was approved by a meeting on 7 August 1928. The foundation stone was laid on 26 June 1929 by the Bishop of Wakefield, who consecrated the building on 6 May 1931. The builder was Luther Hortimer of Hebden Bridge, the joiner Josiah Halstead of Todmorden, the slater Wrigley and Son, Hebden Bridge, plasterers John Lord and Sons of Hebden Bridge and plumber J.H. Boocock of Hebden Bridge. The total cost, including fittings, was £12,374.
Services had begun on 2 August 1882 in a room in Albert Street, and a site for a new church was purchased in 1893 for £450. In 1898 a church (now the school) was built and dedicated on 4 April 1899; it cost £2,000. On 31 October 1900 Miss Mary Sowden left £5,000 for building a new church in Birchcliffe Road, but a scheme was not put in hand for twenty-eight years.
Exterior Description
The church is an unusually late example of an essay in the simplified Perpendicular style which was often used in the first two decades of the 20th century. It consists essentially of one long rectangular vessel comprising nave and chancel under a single roof ridge, with tall two-light clerestory windows with panel tracery to light the nave and small passage aisles below them, lit by pairs of rectangular lights in each bay. The chancel has a two-light window of fourteenth century style in the north and south walls, with an aisle-like building on the south which houses a vestry and a staircase to rooms in a crypt below the chancel. The division of the nave from the chancel is marked externally by a fleche (rebuilt in 1965 after gale damage) on the roof ridge and there is a tall narrow transept on the south side at this point, housing the organ above a vestry. This has a window at basement level, a three-light window with trefoiled heads at ground-floor level and a blind wall below the gable at clerestory level which is ornemented with a stone cross of Celtic design in relief. The corners are supported by slender angle buttresses. The west wall of the nave has a four-light window with panel tracery, and three trefoil-headed lights in the wall below. The east window is of five lights, also with panel tracery. The east and west walls have slender buttresses which are extensions of the north and south walls of the nave and chancel. The south porch is in the west bay of the nave wall, and has a window in the south gable and a doorway with a segmental arch decorated with mouldings which die into the canted responds. The wall above is patterned with three trefoiled arches of blind arcading.
Interior
Interior Description
The interior is reminiscent of churches built by admirers of Bodley, with simple lines and few details, the plain walls being intended as a background for rich fittings. The walls are plastered, no stonework being exposed, and the segmental arches opening into the six bays of the aisles are simply chamfered. Above them the clerestory windows are set within plain reveals. The chancel windows have unplastered stone reveals. The alleys are paved with stone and the floors under the pews are of wood blocks. The sanctuary is paved with black, white, grey and red marble laid in 1940. In the south wall there is a piscina under an ogee arch. The windows are all filled with opaque glass and the nave and chancel are covered by a continuous waggon vault above a moulded cornice with transverse ribs dividing the plaster vault into narrow bays each the width of the space between the rafters. There is a boss at each bay where an iron tie-rod touches the apex of the vault. The chancel is divided from the nave by a rood beam and a thicker transverse timber arch, and beyond that every intersection of the ridge with the ribs has a boss. The east and west windows reach up almost to the vault, and the reredos is the same width as the east window. The west window is set within a shallow recess which also is pierced by the three trefoiled lancets lower down. The aisles have simple pent roofs. The details throughout the interior are simple but good the doors, for example have linenfold panelling and crown glass in the south porch and studded wooden panels elsewhere.
Fixtures and fittings
Altar
1931
The altar is of oak, with five panels of blind Perpendicular tracery along the front, carved by H.P. Jackson of Coley.
Reredos
1931
The reredos is of oak in the Perpendicular style by Jackson, 1931, and has similar panelling above a painted triptych with eight niches, of which four are provided with statues of St. John, The Virgin Mary St. Mary Magdalene end St. James added in 1958. The triptych is painted with The Crucifixion after Perugino painted by J.H. Wallich, 1931
Pulpit
1931
The pulpit is of oak, in the Perpendicular style, by Jackson of Coley, 1931; it is octagonal with panels of busy blind tracery and niches at the angles with small figures of St. Paulinus, St. Aidan, St. Oswald, St. Cuthbert, The Venerable Bede and St. Hilda.
Lectern
1931
The lectern is an oak reading desk.
Font (object)
1931
The font has a fluted stem and a text incised with good lettering round the bowl.
Churchyard
Grid reference: SD 993 273
Burial and War Grave Information
It is unknown whether the building is consecrated.
It is unknown whether the churchyard has been used for burial.
It is unknown whether the churchyard is used for burial.
It is unknown whether the churchyard has war graves.
National Heritage record for England designations
There are no records of National Heritage assets within the curtilage of this site.
Environment
Ancient, Veteran & Notable Trees
Caring for God's Acre is a conservation charity working to support groups and individuals to investigate, care for, and enjoy the wildlife and heritage treasures found within churchyards and other burial grounds. Look on their website for information and advice and please contact their staff directly. They can help you manage this churchyard for people and wildlife.
To learn more about all the species recorded against this church, go to the Burial Ground Portal within the NBN Atlas. You can check the spread of records through the years, discovering what has been recorded and when, plus what discoveries might remain to be uncovered.
There are no records of Ancient, Veteran or Notable Trees within the curtilage of this site.
Renewables
| Renewable | Installed |
|---|---|
| Solar PV Panels | N/A |
| Solar Thermal Panels | N/A |
| Biomass | N/A |
| Wind Turbine | N/A |
| Air Source Heat Pump | N/A |
| Ground Source Heat Pump | N/A |
| Ev Charging | N/A |
Species summary
There are no records of species within the curtilage of this site.
Caring for God's Acre is a conservation charity working to support groups and individuals to investigate, care for, and enjoy the wildlife and heritage treasures found within churchyards and other burial grounds. Look on their website for information and advice and please contact their staff directly. They can help you manage this churchyard for people and wildlife.
To learn more about all the species recorded against this church, go to the Burial Ground Portal within the NBN Atlas. You can check the spread of records through the years, discovering what has been recorded and when, plus what discoveries might remain to be uncovered.
'Seek advice' Species
More information on species and action to be taken upon discovery.
Caring for God's Acre is a conservation charity working to support groups and individuals to investigate, care for, and enjoy the wildlife and heritage treasures found within churchyards and other burial grounds. Look on their website for information and advice and please contact their staff directly. They can help you manage this churchyard for people and wildlife.
To learn more about all the species recorded against this church, go to the Burial Ground Portal within the NBN Atlas. You can check the spread of records through the years, discovering what has been recorded and when, plus what discoveries might remain to be uncovered.
Further information
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