St Mary's Church Partington
|
The new church was designed by Scottish architect George Truefitt (b. 1824) based in Bloomsbury Square, London (pictured below). It was built in local Runcorn dark red sandstone with a clay tiled roof, in a quirky ‘arts and craft’ style that was quite radical for the time. The church comprises a chancel, nave, south porch and a south-east tower, with shingled spire. Sadly the three bells were removed and sold in 1990.
The Church was listed Grade 2 on 17th January 2001. St. Mary’s Church originally served a small rural village with a population of 576, living in a few streets of houses alongside a couple of pubs, farms and cottage industries, surrounded by countryside. As the quiet village of Partington has grown into the thriving town of over 8500 people today, so St. Mary’s Church has remained the familiar and striking landmark in the heart of the town. Photo credits: Tom Jeffs (Church) Mark R. Leach (George Truefitt) |
Partington was previously in the chapelry of St. George’s Church, Carrington until 1884 when Partington’s own church of St Mary the Virgin was built on Manchester Road. The cost of the church was £3500, money provided by Revd Cannon George Heron and Sir William Cunliffe Brooks, who had purchased the land from Lord Stamford in 1858. In 1885 Partington was made a parish in its own right.
An extension constructed in 1975 was rebuilt and enlarged in 1991 to provide a meeting room known as the “St George's Room” with toilets, kitchen, vestry and office. In 1999 part of the loft area was converted into another comfortable meeting room known as the “Upper Room”