Bloke
Premium Member
"Labelled by experts as a “temple to Freemasonry” and “a total concept as exotic as Roslin Chapel in Scotland”, St Edmund’s Church in Rochdale (Greater Manchester) is one of England’s hidden gems. So much so, that it is totally unknown. .....Many Rochdale churches from the 19th century have Masonic symbolism, such as Christchurch in Healey, but none can compare to St Edmund’s. The church was designed by James Medland Taylor, with input from Albert Hudson Royds, sponsor and Freemason, and the fist incumbent, E.W. Gilbert, artist and Freemason....Pevsner added that “Almost every fitting and feature has reference to the Lore of masonry.”"
http://www.philipcoppens.com/stedmunds.html (worth reading)
St Edmunds Church Falinge (or the Church of St Edmund) is located on Clement Royds Street, Falinge. St Edmunds is now redundant and was at one stage was critically endangered, and was placed among the nation’s top-10 endangered buildings. It has since been acquired by the Church Conservation Trust.The building was constructed between 1870-1873 at a cost around £28,000 (£1.84 million as of 2013), at that time a suitable parish church could have been built for around £4,000. Commissioned by Rochdale’s local industrialist banker and Freemason Albert Hudson Royds who belonged to Rochdale’s prominent Royds family of wool merchants.
The Royds were the financiers of the Rochdale Canal. After acquiring a crossroads at the highest point of Rochdale, Albert commissioned the Manchester-based practice of James Medland and Henry Taylor to design and construct. Freemasonry in Rochdale was a strong force and its members were stalwarts of the local community, the construction of the building was completed to a very high standard in 1873, with an “enormous” cost of around £25,000 (£1.64 million as of 2013). It is the only known church building in England that is overtly dedicated to Freemasonry and is therefore unique within English architecture. Because of the building’s craftsmanship, design and prevalent Masonic theme, St Edmunds Church was designated a Grade II listed building in 1985
http://rochdale-past.co.uk/st-edmunds-church-falinge/
More images would be good...
http://www.philipcoppens.com/stedmunds.html (worth reading)
St Edmunds Church Falinge (or the Church of St Edmund) is located on Clement Royds Street, Falinge. St Edmunds is now redundant and was at one stage was critically endangered, and was placed among the nation’s top-10 endangered buildings. It has since been acquired by the Church Conservation Trust.The building was constructed between 1870-1873 at a cost around £28,000 (£1.84 million as of 2013), at that time a suitable parish church could have been built for around £4,000. Commissioned by Rochdale’s local industrialist banker and Freemason Albert Hudson Royds who belonged to Rochdale’s prominent Royds family of wool merchants.
The Royds were the financiers of the Rochdale Canal. After acquiring a crossroads at the highest point of Rochdale, Albert commissioned the Manchester-based practice of James Medland and Henry Taylor to design and construct. Freemasonry in Rochdale was a strong force and its members were stalwarts of the local community, the construction of the building was completed to a very high standard in 1873, with an “enormous” cost of around £25,000 (£1.64 million as of 2013). It is the only known church building in England that is overtly dedicated to Freemasonry and is therefore unique within English architecture. Because of the building’s craftsmanship, design and prevalent Masonic theme, St Edmunds Church was designated a Grade II listed building in 1985
http://rochdale-past.co.uk/st-edmunds-church-falinge/
More images would be good...
