Church of St Peter and St Paul, Ormskirk
| Church of St Peter and St Paul | |
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 Church of St Peter and St Paul
Location in West Lancashire
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| Coordinates: 53°34′09″N 2°53′16″W / 53.5692°N 2.8877°W | |
| OS grid reference | SD 4130608436 |
| Location | Ormskirk, Lancashire |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Anglican |
| Architecture | |
| Status | Parish church |
| Functional status | Active |
| Heritage designation | Grade II* |
| Designated | 11 May 1953 |
| Administration | |
| Deanery | Ormskirk |
| Archdeaconry | Wigan & West Lancashire |
| Diocese | Liverpool |
| Province | York |
The Church of St Peter and St Paul is in the market town of Ormskirk, Lancashire, England. Dating from no later than the 12th century, it is one of only three churches in England to have both a western tower and a central spire, and the only one to have them both at the same end of the church. It is an active Anglican parish church in the Diocese of Liverpool. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building.
The exact date of the foundation of a church in Ormskirk is unclear, although it is likely that there was a church on the site of the present one in Saxon time. The Anglican parish of Ormskirk encompassed the settlements of Lathom, Burscough, Bickerstaffe, Scarisbrick and Skelmersdale. Parts of the present church existed in the 12th century, although the building has been altered and added to over successive centuries. The north wall of the chancel dates from c. 1170. A chapel was added to the south c. 1280. The steeple was added in the late 14th century. The large west tower was built c. 1540–50. The tower was probably built to house the bells from Burscough Priory, which had been suppressed c. 1536 as part of Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monasteries. This is one of only three churches in England to have both a western tower and a central spire. Between 1877 and 1891 the Lancaster architects Paley and Austin and their successors carried out restoration work in the church. These included reflooring and reseating the church, installing a new heating system, removing the galleries, and rebuilding and reroofing parts of the church.
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