HISTORY
The area of Higher Booths was reliant on St Mary & All Saints at Goodshaw to provide a place of worship for the Anglican community from the mid-sixteenth century. By the 1880s, with the rapidly increasing population of Crawshawbooth, it was unable to cope, with the demand for pews being fifty applicants for every pew vacancy.
At the same time as this rise in population the Brooks family where also rising in prestige and wealth. The Brooks family, who were cattle dealers from Whalley, came to Crawshawbooth at the turn of the 18th century acquiring Sunnyside House and then added Crawshaw Hall in 1831. They owned Sunnyside Print works and also a number of quarries in the Rossendale area from which a lot of the local houses and mills were built. In 1884 Thomas Brooks became High Sheriff of Lancashire and was created Baron Crawshaw in 1892. They also had houses at Tarporley in Cheshire and Long Whatton, Leicestershire.
In 1888 Thomas Brooks donated the land and £3,000 towards the building of St John the Evangelist (total cost approx. £12,000), the exterior of which is built of local stone with `York` stone dressing and the interior is red Rainhill sandstone. The Church which was consecrated 25th October 1892 is often referred to as "The Cathedral of Rossendale". The Church was originally served by the vicars of Goodshaw, but in 1899 it was created an independent Parish and remained so until 1984 when the benefice became a joint one with Goodshaw.
EXPLORE
Explored with @LancashireExplorations and a none member.
So I did a recce on this place back in the summer and it had been recently sealed after @Mr Beady had done it , Any way we decided to go have a butchers and found the panels had been pulled off but didn't seem entry had been gained maybe they were too lazy to work out how to make the handle work but about five seconds of trying saw us in and looking about . The church is covered in a fine layer of brown dust maybe from the sandstone ? and also a layer of white mould clearly visible over most of the pews and woodwork. anyway the overall state of the place is pretty good everthing is still here including the bells and the kitchen sink
.
decent little explore with some great piks to be had the spiral steps up to the bell tower are a feckin killer tho be warned lol. anyway time for piks
The area of Higher Booths was reliant on St Mary & All Saints at Goodshaw to provide a place of worship for the Anglican community from the mid-sixteenth century. By the 1880s, with the rapidly increasing population of Crawshawbooth, it was unable to cope, with the demand for pews being fifty applicants for every pew vacancy.
At the same time as this rise in population the Brooks family where also rising in prestige and wealth. The Brooks family, who were cattle dealers from Whalley, came to Crawshawbooth at the turn of the 18th century acquiring Sunnyside House and then added Crawshaw Hall in 1831. They owned Sunnyside Print works and also a number of quarries in the Rossendale area from which a lot of the local houses and mills were built. In 1884 Thomas Brooks became High Sheriff of Lancashire and was created Baron Crawshaw in 1892. They also had houses at Tarporley in Cheshire and Long Whatton, Leicestershire.
In 1888 Thomas Brooks donated the land and £3,000 towards the building of St John the Evangelist (total cost approx. £12,000), the exterior of which is built of local stone with `York` stone dressing and the interior is red Rainhill sandstone. The Church which was consecrated 25th October 1892 is often referred to as "The Cathedral of Rossendale". The Church was originally served by the vicars of Goodshaw, but in 1899 it was created an independent Parish and remained so until 1984 when the benefice became a joint one with Goodshaw.
EXPLORE
Explored with @LancashireExplorations and a none member.
So I did a recce on this place back in the summer and it had been recently sealed after @Mr Beady had done it , Any way we decided to go have a butchers and found the panels had been pulled off but didn't seem entry had been gained maybe they were too lazy to work out how to make the handle work but about five seconds of trying saw us in and looking about . The church is covered in a fine layer of brown dust maybe from the sandstone ? and also a layer of white mould clearly visible over most of the pews and woodwork. anyway the overall state of the place is pretty good everthing is still here including the bells and the kitchen sink
.decent little explore with some great piks to be had the spiral steps up to the bell tower are a feckin killer tho be warned lol. anyway time for piks
