St Matthew's Church, Burnley

St Matthew's Church, Burnley
St Matthew's Church, Burnley, from the South-East
St Matthew's Church, Burnley Location in Burnley
53°47′01″N2°15′17″W / 53.7837°N 2.2546°W / 53.7837; -2.2546
Location	St Matthew Street, Burnley, Lancashire
Country	England
Denomination	Anglican
Churchmanship	Liberal Catholic
Website	http://www.stmatthewsburnley.com
History
Status	Parish church
Founded	7 October 1876
Consecrated	1 November 1879
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	William Waddington, Henry Paley
Architectural type	Church
Style	Gothic Revival
Groundbreaking	1876
Completed	1931
Administration
Province	York
Diocese	Blackburn
Archdeaconry	Blackburn
Deanery	Burnley
Parish	Burnley (Habergham Eaves) St. Matthew the Apostle with Holy Trinity
Clergy
Vicar(s)	Revd Alex Frost
Assistant priest(s)	Rev. Kat Gregory-Witham
Laity
Reader(s)	Mrs J. M. Mackrell
Organist(s)	Peter Harrison
Churchwarden(s)	Walter Jackson, Audrey Palmer, Harry Rowe, Stuart Smith

St Matthew's Church is in St Matthew's Street, Burnley, Lancashire, England. ^{[lower-alpha 1]} It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Blackburn. The original church was built between 1876 and 1879, and was designed by William Waddington and Sons. This burnt down in 1927 and was replaced by the present church. In the 1970s St Matthew's joined with the neighbouring Holy Trinity Church.

History

St Matthew's was designed by William Waddington and Sons, ^[3] and built between 1876 and 1879. The Lancaster firm of architects Paley and Austin had taken part in the competition for the design, but had been unsuccessful. ^[4] Miss Halsted of Hood House laid the foundation stone on 7 October 1876. ^[5] The church was consecrated on 1 November 1879 by the Bishop of Manchester. It contained stained glass windows designed by Kempe and Burne-Jones. ^[5]

Vestments, lighted candles and birettas, in the Anglo-Catholic tradition, were used until the 1880s, but caused disquiet in the diocese. The Bishop of Manchester refused to allow the parish to have an assistant curate until the incumbent had made assurances about the church's position. The use of two altar candles and an adherence to Anglican liturgy is still reflected in the worship at the church. ^[5]

In 1924 electric lighting was installed. On Christmas Day 1927 the church was destroyed by fire caused by the electrics, leaving only the walls standing; it was rebuilt between 1929 and 1931 supervised by Henry Paley of Austin and Paley, the successor in the Lancaster practice. ^[5] The work cost £14,093 and provided seating for 620 people. ^[6] The rebuilt church was opened by the Bishop of Blackburn. The longest serving vicar of the church was Revd F. Jones who served between 1923 and 1945. In the 1970s St Matthew's integrated with Holy Trinity Church. ^[5]

Architecture

The church is designed in the style of the 13th century, with a turret at the southwest corner. The stained glass includes a window dating from 1951 by Harry Stammers. ^[3] There are also two windows by Henry Harvey. ^[7] The original pipe organ of 1880, designed by Jardine of Manchester was destroyed in the fire. ^[8] It was replaced by a three-manual organ which had been built in 1920 for a church in Farnworth by Alexander Young, also of Manchester. This was moved to Burnley and rebuilt in St Matthew's in 1933 by Laycock and Bannister of Cross Hills. ^[9]

Present day

St Matthew's is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Burnley, the archdeaconry of Blackburn, and the diocese of Blackburn. Its benefice has been combined with that of Holy Trinity, Burnley forming the benefice of Burnley (Habergham Eaves) St Matthew with Holy Trinity. ^[2] It holds services on Sundays, ^[10] and during the week. ^[11] Associated with the church are groups of Scouts, Guides, ^[12] and the Mothers' Union. ^[13]

See also

• Lancashire portal

• List of ecclesiastical works by Austin and Paley (1916–44)
• Places of worship in Burnley

Notes

1. Some sources use different names for the church. The church's own website uses "St Matthew with Holy Trinity Habergham Eaves Church". ^[1] The official Church of England website uses "St Matthew The Apostle, Habergham Eaves". ^[2]

References

Citations

1. Home, St Matthew with Holy Trinity Habergham Eaves Church, retrieved 27 January 2015
2. St Matthew The Apostle, Habergham Eaves, Church of England , retrieved 29 August 2012
3. Hartwell & Pevsner 2009, p. 189
4. Brandwood et al. (2012), p. 229
5. History of St Matthew's and Holy Trinity, St Matthew with Holy Trinity Habergham Eaves Church, retrieved 29 August 2012
6. Brandwood et al. (2012), p. 252.
7. Henry Harvey Windows, St Matthew with Holy Trinity Habergham Eaves Church, retrieved 26 January 2015
8. Lancashire, Burnley, St. Matthew, St. Matthew's Street (P00526), British Institute of Organ Studies , retrieved 29 August 2012
9. Lancashire, Burnley, St. Matthew, St. Matthew's Street (S00054), British Institute of Organ Studies , retrieved 29 August 2012
10. About us, St Matthew with Holy Trinity Habergham Eaves Church, retrieved 26 January 2015
11. Service times, St Matthew with Holy Trinity Habergham Eaves Church, retrieved 26 January 2015
12. Uniformed organisations, St Matthew with Holy Trinity Habergham Eaves Church, retrieved 26 January 2015
13. Mothers Union, St Matthew with Holy Trinity Habergham Eaves Church, retrieved 26 January 2015

Sources

• Brandwood, Geoff; Austin, Tim; Hughes, John; Price, James (2012), The Architecture of Sharpe, Paley and Austin, Swindon: English Heritage, ISBN   978-1-84802-049-8
• Hartwell, Clare; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2009) [1969], Lancashire: North, The Buildings of England, New Haven and London: Yale University Press, ISBN   978-0-300-12667-9

External links

• St Matthew the Apostle, Habergham – Church of England at genuki
• Image of St Matthew's Church, when burned down, 1927
• Www.stmatthewsburnley.com