St John the Evangelist's Church, Winsford

St John the Evangelist's Church, Winsford
West end of St John's Church, Winsford
St John the Evangelist's Church, Winsford Location in Cheshire
Coordinates: 53°11′32″N 2°32′53″W / 53.1922°N 2.5481°W / 53.1922; -2.5481
OS grid reference	SJ 635 663
Location	Delamere Street, Over, Winsford, Cheshire
Country	England
Denomination	Anglican
Website	St John, Over
History
Founder(s)	Hugh Cholmondeley, 2nd Baron Delamere
Dedication	St John the Evangelist
Consecrated	June 1863
Architecture
Status	Parish church
Functional status	Active
Heritage designation	Grade II
Designated	12 March 1986
Architect(s)	John Douglas
Architectural type	Church
Style	Gothic Revival
Groundbreaking	1861
Completed	1863
Construction cost	£5,000
Specifications
Spire height	140 feet (43 m)
Materials	Sandstone, grey slate roof
Administration
Parish	St John the Evangelist, Over
Deanery	Middlewich
Archdeaconry	Chester
Diocese	Chester
Province	York
Clergy
Vicar(s)	Revd George Crowder
Laity
Reader(s)	Andy Sloan
Churchwarden(s)	Sarah McLellan Dan Holloway

St John the Evangelist's Church is in Over, Winsford, Cheshire, England. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.^[1] It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Chester, the archdeaconry of Chester and the deanery of Middlewich.^[2]

History

In 1860 Hugh Cholmondeley, 2nd Baron Delamere, commissioned the Chester architect John Douglas to build a church in the centre of Over, which was then a village separate from Winsford, as a memorial to his wife, Sara. At that time Douglas was at the start of his career and was working for Lord Delamere at his house and estate at Vale Royal Abbey. A new parish of St John the Evangelist was created out of the parishes of St Mary, Whitegate and St Chad, Over. The church was consecrated by John Graham, Bishop of Chester in June 1863.^[3] This was the first church designed by John Douglas.^[4]

In 1961 a new choir vestry was formed to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the church. A Lady Chapel was dedicated in 1972 with an aumbry added the following year. Outside porch doors were fitted in 1979.^[3]

Architecture

The church is built in Runcorn sandstone^[3] with a grey slate roof. It is in Decorated style. Its plan consists of a five-bay nave with a clerestory, north and south aisles, a chancel, a tower at the southwest corner, and a vestry at the northeast.^[1] The tower is in three stages with a spire and angle buttresses. In the third stage of the tower are two-light bell openings and clock faces on three sides.^[1] There is no clock face on the south side because when the church was built there were only fields on that side. The spire is 140 feet (43 m) high.^[3] On the spire are lucarnes, and at the top is a wrought iron cross. A chimney stack rises from the gable of the vestry. Internally there is stone panelling at the east end with an alabaster model of the Last Supper.^[1]

External features

In the churchyard there are many memorials; these include one to those who died in a cotton mill fire in Over in 1874.^[3] This memorial is constructed in yellow sandstone ashlar and carries inscriptions, including a quotation from St Mark's Gospel, and the names of the four victims which include a baby aged three months. It is listed at Grade II.^[5]

Present day

Today the church is very active and is evangelical (Bible-believing). The church has regular services on Sundays and Wednesdays. It holds baptisms, marriages and funerals and other occasional events. It is very involved in the community of Winsford.^[3]

See also

• Listed buildings in Winsford
• List of new churches by John Douglas

References