Preston Central Methodist Church

Church in Lancashire, England
53°45′31″N 2°42′12″W / 53.7585°N 2.7032°W / 53.7585; -2.7032OS grid referenceSD 537 294LocationLune Street, Preston, LancashireCountryEnglandDenominationMethodist Church of Great BritainMembership69[1]Weekly attendance96[2]WebsitePreston Central Methodist ChurchHistoryFormer name(s)Preston Central Wesleyan Methodist ChurchArchitectureFunctional statusActiveHeritage designationGrade IIDesignated27 September 1979Architect(s)Poulton and Woodman (remodelling)Architectural typeChurchGroundbreaking1817Completed1818 with further alterations in 1863Construction cost£6,000SpecificationsMaterialsBrick, sandstone façade, slate roofAdministrationDistrictLancashireCircuitPreston Ribble MethodistClergyMinister(s)Revd Sue Griffiths[3]

Preston Central Methodist Church is in Lune Street, Preston, Lancashire, England. It is an active Methodist church in the Preston Ribble Methodist Circuit, and the Lancashire district.[4] The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.[5]

History

The church was built in 1817 as a Wesleyan Methodist chapel.[5] It cost £6,000, and was one of the first public buildings in the country to be lit by gas.[6] It was remodelled in 1862–63 by Poulton and Woodman.[7] In the 1990s a hall in the church was converted into sleeping accommodation for the poor and homeless, and the entrance area was enlarged, allowing for the creation of a coffee shop, kitchen, crèche, and toilets. Improvements were made in the access to the front of the church in 2006.[6]

Architecture

Exterior

The church is built in brick, with a front of sandstone ashlar and a slate roof. It has a rectangular plan, is in two storeys, and is sited at right angles to the street. The symmetrical entrance front faces east and contains a giant round-headed arch carried on two pairs of Corinthian columns. The surround of the arch is moulded, and above it is a moulded dentilled gable. At the top of the columns are moulded cornices, which are carried out over the lateral bays. These bays contain two round-headed windows with imposts and keystones, one in each storey. The lower windows are partly blocked with notice boards, and the upper windows contain circular geometric glazing.[5] Under the arch, steps lead up to a recessed porch with doorways and a Venetian window.[7] Along the sides of the church are two tiers of round-headed windows. At the rear of the church is a two-storey extension with gabled porches and round-headed doorways with fanlights.[5]

Interior

Inside the church is a horseshoe-shaped gallery carried on thin cast iron columns with Ionic caps,[7] and with a foliated balustrade.[5] The ceiling is coffered with glazed panels in the centre.[7] The original pipe organ was built by Gray and Davison and had two manuals.[8] This was replaced in 1881 by a three-manual organ built by W. E. Richardson.[9]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Circuit Membership Statistics Summary October 2015 - District: 21 Lancashire District" (PDF), methodist.org.uk, Methodist Church in Britain, retrieved 25 October 2016
  2. ^ "Circuit Attendance Statistics Summary October 2015" (PDF), methodist.org.uk, Methodist Church in Britain, retrieved 25 October 2016
  3. ^ Blackett, Paul, "About us", www.centralmethodist.org.uk, Preston Central Methodist Church, retrieved 25 October 2016
  4. ^ Home, Preston Central Methodist Church, retrieved 1 May 2014
  5. ^ a b c d e Historic England, "Central Methodist Church (1291958)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 1 May 2014
  6. ^ a b History, Preston Central Methodist Church, retrieved 1 May 2014
  7. ^ a b c d Hartwell, Clare; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2009) [1969], Lancashire: North, The Buildings of England, New Haven and London: Yale University Press, p. 514, ISBN 978-0-300-12667-9
  8. ^ "NPOR [N10720]", National Pipe Organ Register, British Institute of Organ Studies, retrieved 2 July 2020
  9. ^ "NPOR [N10717]", National Pipe Organ Register, British Institute of Organ Studies, retrieved 2 July 2020
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