St Columba's Church, Chester

St Columba's Church

Church entrance
Coordinates: 53°12′39″N 2°52′21″W / 53.2109°N 2.8726°W / 53.2109; -2.8726
Location Newton, Chester
Country United Kingdom
Denomination Roman Catholic
Website StColumbaChester.WordPress.com
History
Founder(s) Canon Francis Murphy
Dedication Saint Columba
Architecture
Status Active
Functional status Parish church
Architect(s) Francis Prichard
Groundbreaking 6 September 1964
Completed 19 February 1966
Administration
Deanery North Cheshire[1]
Diocese Shrewsbury
Province Birmingham

St Columba's is a Roman Catholic Parish church in Newton, Chester. It was built from 1964 to 1965. It is situated on the corner of Plas Newton Lane and Newhall Road in the suburbs, north of the city centre. English Heritage described the church as 'a striking post-war church suburban church'.[2]

History

Construction

In the late 1950s, a priest from St Werburgh's Church in Chester, Canon Francis Murphy, came to Newton and started raising funds to build a new church for the local Catholic population. On 6 September 1964, he laid the foundation stone for the church. It was designed by Francis Prichard (1919 – 2008).[2][3] He was an ecclesiastical architect and was also the Mayor of Crosby.[4] The first Mass was said in the church on 19 December 1965. On 19 February 1966, the church was officially opened by William Grasar, Roman Catholic Bishop of Shrewsbury.[2]

Parish Hall

In 1978, the parish hall was also opened by Bishop Glaser. It was built by the Manpower Services Commission. In 2012, it hosted the Annual General Meeting of the British Heart Foundation.[5]

See also

References

  1. Directory from Diocese of Shrewsbury, retrieved 13 February 2015
  2. 1 2 3 St Columba Church - Chester from English Heritage, retrieved 13 February 2014
  3. History from StColumbaChester.WordPress.com, retrieved 13 February 2015
  4. Tributes paid to former Mayor of Crosby Francis Prichard who has died from Liverpool Echo, 31 December 2008, retrieved 13 February 2015
  5. British Heart Foundation to hold AGM in St Columbas Church Hall, Chester from Chester Chronicle, 3 May 2012, retrieved 13 February 2015
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