St James the Apostle, Wardle, Rochdale

CONSECRATION OF ST JAMES’S CHURCH, WARDLE – Yesterday the new church at Wardle, near Rochdale, (the first stone of which was laid in May 1856), was opened and consecrated by the Lord Bishop of Manchester. The church has cost £2,760 (about £200 more than the original estimate) It is a stone edifice in the early English style, consisting of a good deep chancel, two side aisles, vestry, organ chamber, tower and conical spire about 117 feet high at the south-west angle. Internally the roofs are open-timbered, on five Roman arches, on circular columns with clerestory; but no galleries and the seats are open benches, accommodating about 500 persons. The stone has been got in the neighbourhood. The land has been given by Mr James Whittaker, whose mill is near. The architect is Mr Shaw of Saddleworth; the builder Mr Edward Taylor of Rochdale. The church is a neat structure on slightly elevated ground. [Manchester Guardian 22 January 1858 page 3].

WARDLE - St. James's Church, Wardle, near Rochdale, the first stone of which was laid in May, 1856, has been opened and consecrated by the Bishop of Manchester. The cost of the new edifice has been £2,700, being about £200 more than the original estimate. The style of architecture is Early English, and the design consists of a deep chancel, nave, two side aisles, vestry, organ chamber, tower, and conical spire, the latter occupying the south-west angle of the church, and about 117 feet high. The roofs are open timbered, supported on five Roman arches, resting on circular columns with Roman capitals, and a clerestory above. There are no galleries, and the seats, which will accommodate about 500 persons, are open. The floor is laid with coloured tiles, and the windows are filled with white glass. The principal entrances are at the west end and under the tower at the south side. The stone of which the edifice is erected has been got in the neighbourhood. The land has been given by Mr. James Whittaker. The architect was Mr. Shaw, of Saddleworth; the builder, Mr. Edmund Taylor, of Rochdale; the joiners, Messrs. Schofield, of Todmorden. [Builder 30 January 1858 page 80]

Reference    Manchester Guardian 22 January 1858 page 3 – consecration
Reference    Builder 30 January 1858 page 80