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About St. Thomas'     |
A history of St. Thomas' St Thomas' Parish Church was opened in 1825 having been built as one of a hundred churches funded by grants from the government and regarded as a thanksgiving for victory over Napoleon, hence the name "Waterloo" Churches. It was designed by the architect George Basevi, and was one of his earlier works. It is his only surviving "Commissioners'" church The church was built between 1822 and 18.25 at a cost of 15,611 (1,080,000 as of 2013), A grant of 15,636 was given by the Church Building Commission. The contractors were Samuel Buxton and Son, and the land was given by Lady Warren-Bulkeley. The church was consecrated on 25 September 1825 as the daughter church of St Mary, Stockport. At the time it was built it could seat 2,000. The church was refurbished by T.H. Allen in 1881, and the chancel remodelled by Medland Taylor in 1890. The original seating has been replaced, but the galleries have survived. St. Thomas was built in the classical style and is now recognised as a building of National importance (Grade 1 Listed). It was built to front onto Hillgate which was then the main route from London to Manchester and Carlisle; hence the grand portico at the East end. Hillgate is still rich in hostelries originating from those days, but Wellington Road (A6) and Wellington Road Bridge were opened soon after and became the main throughfare into Stockport. In our own time, the church continues to seek to adapt to the changing requirements of worship, and plans are currently underway to include more facilities inside the church, including toilets and a kitchen, to enable it to be used as a venue for concerts and recitals. We have records of all burials in the churchyard for geneological purposes, although many other records are kept at the Diocesan Registry at Chester. |
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