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ST.
PETERS PARISH CHURCH
WALSDEN
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Anglicans
in Walsden attended the church of St. Mary in Todmorden
but, when this was closed in 1832 and replaced by Christ
Church, the people were unhappy. They were also growing
in number, and the population of Walsden was possibly
greater than that of Todmorden. Walsden folk found Christ
Church too far to travel and either gave up church altogether
or found other places to worship.
The
Oddfellows, who met at the Waggon and Horses, built
a school and place for worship in 1836 at Bottoms in
Walsden. This comprised three 2-roomed cottages on the
ground floor with a school and preaching room above,
access being gained from an enclosed yard at one end.
Mr. Thomas Fielden, school master at the nearby Wesleyan
establishment at LANEBOTTOM, moved his pupils to this
new building.
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Additionally, the Primitive Methodists
at KNOWLWOOD CHAPEL also started a school and preaching
place there. The two branches of Methodists held a joint
tenancy and they rubbed along together quite well. However,
when the railway works were in full swing, there were
many navvies and strangers to the area and the Primitive
Methodists gave up their quest to convert the chaos
to Godly peace and withdrew from the arrangement.
This
coincided with the Established Church holding negotiations
with the Wesleyan Society at Lanebottom for the use
of their space at Lanebottom. The trustees of Lanebottom
school were not at all happy with the prospect of their
building being used by the Established Church so the
Todmorden incumbent, Rev. Cowell, arranged for the church
to take over the tenancy of the Oddfellows building
at a rent of £12 a year. It was agreed that the
church would have use of the building for Sunday schools
and week nights as required, whilst the Wesleyans would
continue to use the building for their day school.
Arrangements
began for the opening of a Church Sunday school with
occasional church services before or after the day school.
A vestry was built and books and equipment were obtained
from Todmorden. In December 1840, Rev. Cowell conducted
the first service there. The service was well attended
and the room was full. Mr. John Heyworth acted as clerk,
a violoncello and flute led the singing. Thomas Law
senior and his son Thomas Law junior were the musicians.
One
of the congregation was James Scholfield of CALFLEE FARM in Walsden. James had always remained faithful
to the Church, despite most of his extended family turning
to Wesleyism, although in his later years he had only
attended on a casual basis, putting his energies into
being a Superintendant at the Wesleyan school. A few
days after this first service, James was taken ill.
The Rev. Cowell went to visit him, whereby James rejoiced
that he had lived to see the day when Walsden had its
own church. He went on to say he could now die happy.
James died that week and a local girl wrote in her diary
for 1840,
"Old Jas Scholfield Calflee died
Decr 14th. he was in Bottoms School Room on the evening
of Decr 6th. at the Church Service."
In
order to maintain the services at Walsden, the Rev.
Cowell needed a curate. The Rev. William Morgan arrived,
fresh from Trinity College in Dublin, and turned out
to be a zealous and earnest man, full of Irish charm,
who set about pressing those who failed to attend church
to give it a go. Sadly, he was summonsed by the Bishop
to take over the incumbency of St. James Church in Clitheroe
and left Walsden after just over 12 months. After settling
in at Clitheroe, many of his old friends from Walsden
would travel over to visit him, and in the summer of
1844 he organised a party of his old flock to visit
him for a long weekend. The party set off early on the
Saturday morning and remained until the Monday morning,
attending the church service on the Sunday. There were
about 60 of them in all, and they were billeted with
parishioners in Clitheroe and made very welcome. A full
account of this visit was recorded in one of the Manchester
newspapers, stating how a band of devoted church people
had gone to see their old pastor, and giving a picturesque
account of how they had wound their way over the hills
in waggons and carts. The visit was reciprocated, and
the Clitheroe parishioners visited Walsden in small
groups over the coming years.
After
a couple of unsuccessful curates, the Rev. George Dowty
arrived in Walsden in 1842. He was a man of the people
and went into residence at Bankfield Buildings in Todmorden.
The 1841 census had confirmed the growing population
of Walsden and in 1844 a special census was taken for
a further check. There was enough of a population for
Walsden to be made a parish in its own right, separate
from Todmorden and Rochdale, and the following year,
Walsden was made a Peel Parish. |
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The
new church of St. Peter was built in 1845 on land donated
by Mr. John Crossley of SCAITCLIFFE HALL. In the spring
of 1848, the parochial schoolrooms at Henshaw Meadow
were built, close to the church. The church was consecrated
on 7th August 1848 in the presence of a congregation
of 3000. |
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The first baptism recorded in Walsden Church
had already taken place in 1845, the first marriage
was on September 28th. 1848, and the first burial on
October 23rd. 1848 |
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The
opening coincided with the anniversary of the Battle
of Waterloo. A pensioners and militiamen's feast was
organised for that day. They assembled in front of the
WHITE HART in Todmorden and were put through a series
of exercises by Lieutenant John Eastwood (of Eastwood)
after which he rode at the head of the column and the
men followed in procession towards Walsden Church, the
rear being brought up by Mr. John and Mrs. Crossley
in a carriage. |
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When they arrived at the church they
were again put through some exercises by Captain Robert
Hardman (corn miller of Gauxholme). They then marched
into the church where a special service was laid on.
When the service was over they marched to the schoolrooms
where a feast had been set out, paid for by Mr. Crossley.
The party then adjourned to the Hollins Inn where they
were all treated to a glass of their choice of liquor
again at the expense of Mr. Crossley. |
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St.
Peter's in the winter, taken about 1900 and reproduced
by kind permission of Roger Birch |
After
a couple of winters, it was realised the church
and school could not be kept warm. They were roofed
with red London tiles, which were unsuitable for the
Walsden winter climate. They were replaced with blue
slate tiles, but still the people were cold. The heating
apparatus, known affectionately as Moses, was a hot
air system, and all the warmth was escaping into the
vaulted roof space. Moses was replaced by a modern system
of a hot oven boiler, which fed hot water through pipes
along the naive and the aisles, and this proved much
more satisfactory. |
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When
the Duke of Wellington died in 1852, Rev. Dowty had
the idea of raising funds for a Wellington Memorial
organ. The funds were raised quickly, and in 1853 the
organ was installed at a cost of £300.
The
almanac of the time reported:
"July
8 1853 the Wellington Organ opened in Walsden Church.
Holt & Son builders. Amongst the additions to the
choir were Mrs. Sunderland, the Misses Tankard and Bancroft,
Messrs Perring, Delavanti and Chadwick, and the Todmorden
Harmonic Society."
The
spire was built in 1864. The clock and peal of bells
were added in 1872 at a cost of £800 as this advertisement
from the Todmorden & District News shows: |
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January
12th 1872
An
influential committee has been appointed for the purpose
of raising
funds for putting a peal of bells and
clock
in the church tower of St.
Peter's, Walsden.
Estimated
expense £800.
Subscriptions
will be thankfully
received by the Treasurer Reuben
Haigh Esq., of Pastureside and by the churchwardens;
or may be paid
into the District Bank Todmorden to the
credit of the "Walsden Church Bells
and Clock Fund."
Rev,
F.T. O'Donoghue Chairman
John
Wade Senior Hon. Sec. |
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photo
by kind permission of Frank Woolrych |
The
first bells rang on 11th. September 1872. The bells
and the clock were dedicated by the Lord Bishop on 21st.
October and then disaster struck! Within 2 weeks, the
chimes weight on the clock broke and fell through 3
floors, breaking the tiling of the church porch. It
landed on the ground and sank quite some depth into
the earth. |
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Edwin
Crossley Atkinson of Pontefract and his sister placed
a memorial window in stained glass in Walsden Church
in June 1906 to the memory of their father and mother,
the late Captain Atkinson and his wife. The inscription
read:
To
the Glory of God and in memory of John Frank Atkinson,
born January 7th 1821, died October 12th 1898; also
to his wife Mary Elizabeth, born May 12th 1834, died
October 18th 1898.
Erected by Mary Louisa and Edwin
Crossley.
Life continued normally in the Parish until Friday 28th. May 1948 when, amid preparations for a great centenary celebration, the church caught fire. The entire neighbourhood was roused from bed to watch in horror as the church became engulfed in flames.
The story of the fire is illustrated below. The photos were sent by Janet Beardwood, whose father John Lord (1913-2001) took and developed many of them himself. |
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The residents of nearby Dampier Street were the first to witness the tragedy, alerted by the sounds of cracking glass and a bright orange glow. Only 30 minutes earlier, the vicar, the Revd. Crawford, had been inside the building after the children’s rehearsal for the Sunday School anniversary service.
The inferno continued for several hours and the following morning the locals found a sad sight. |
The County Fire Service responded within minutes but by then the church was well ablaze. Spookily, just as the church clock struck midnight, the roof collapsed.
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All that was left of main body of the church were the shell and, amazingly, the spire. |
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Many invaluable artefacts were lost including the stained glass windows, church manuscripts and music. In the aftermath of the fire, the congregation needed somewhere to worship. The adjacent church schoolroom was the obvious answer. |
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From the day following the fire until the consecration of the new church, they used this schoolroom. Each weekend members had to clear the room and set it up ready for the church services, then it all had to be restored ready for school on the Monday morning. |
the schoolroom ready for a service
photo kindly sent by Janet Beardwood |
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This could have spelled the end of Walsden Church, but the undaunted parishioners set up a re-building fund immediately.
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The ceremony of laying the new
foundation stone
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The church had not been fully insured and it took 8 years of hard work before the rebuilding was completed.
The choir at the reconsecration |
The interior almost finished.
On 10th March 1956 the church was reconsecrated by the Bishop of Wakefield.
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Parish Registers |
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The
registers of St. Peters have been filmed and are available
to buy on microfiche from the West
Yorkshire Archives at:
http://www.archives.wyjs.org.uk/index.htm
Baptisms
1845 - 1933
Burials
1848 - 1943
Two
weddings as announced in the Todmorden & District
News are as follows:
February
2nd 1872
On
the 1st last at the Walsden Parish Church by the Rev,
F.T. O'Donoghue vicar. John Crowther to Miss Hannah
Fielden both of Clough, Walsden.
February
9th 1872
On
the 8th inst. at the Walsden Parish Church by the Rev,
F.T. O'Donoghue vicar. John Stevenson of Lees, Oldham
to Mary Crossley Peel Cottages, Walsden. |
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Burial
Ground |
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The
graveyard is reasonably maintained to the front of the
church, which is the place most seen by worshippers
and visitors. However, the areas to the rear are maintained
to a lesser degree. Most of the graves are easy to read
and are laid out in neat rows. There is a new extension
to the burial ground, which is still in use. |
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Apparently,
St. Peter's is unique and lucky in that it has two separate
memorials to two Walsden lads who suffered at the hands
of the Zulus in South Africa in 1879. These lads, JOSEPH HAIGH and Mark Diggle, died in horrific circumstances
and are buried thousands of miles away from home. Their
respective families remembered them, and each is included
on the family grave memorial. |
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In
Memory of Mary the wife of John DIGGLE
who
died May 7th 1864 aged 55 years.
Also
of Mary their daughter
who
died June 26th 1864 aged 6 months.
Also
of Mark DIGGLE
who
died Feb 3rd 1865 aged 59 years.
Also
of Betty wife of the above named Mark DIGGLE
Who died
Feb. 19th 1874 aged 67 years.
Also of Betty daughter
of the above named
John and Jane DIGGLE
who
died Nov. 30th 1871 aged 7 months.
Also
of Mark DIGGLE son of the above John
and Mary
Who
died Oct. 27th 1875 aged 22 years.
Also
of Mark DIGGLE
son of the above named Mark and Betty
DIGGLE
Private
of the 24th Regiment
Born
October 4th 1850
Killed
in Action at Isandula Zululand January
22nd 1879 |
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Reuben
the son of Joseph and Sarah HAIGH
born 11 July 1847 died 21 October 1848
Also
of Frank their son
born 14 February 1867 died 30 March 1868.
Also
Fred their son
born 17 September 1869 died 14 August 1870
Also
of Joseph their son
Lance Sergeant 24th regiment
born 12 September 1856
Killed
in action at Isandula, Zululand
22
January 1879
Also
of the above named Sarah HAIGH
born
24th May 1822 died 3rd Feb. 1891 |
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Memorial
Inscriptions
A
large selection of photographs and memorial inscriptions
from the burial ground can be found from the following
link:
ST.
PETER'S MEMORIAL INSCRIPTIONS |
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Sexton's
grave plot list
The
Sexton's Grave Plot list has been preserved. It contains
not only the expected details of the occupants of
each grave, but also the names of the parents of the
occupants, including the adults. This is an invaluable
aid to anyone researching ancestors from Walsden.
The contents of the book detailing 786 graves in the
oldest part of the burial ground can be seen by clicking
on the link below
SEXTON'S
GRAVE OCCUPANTS LIST
Our grateful thanks to Janet Beardwood for sending us her photos of the church after the fire and during the rebuilding
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