St Martin's Church, Ashton upon Mersey | |
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St Martin's Church, Ashton upon Mersey, from the southwest
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Coordinates: 53°26′00″N 2°20′38″W / 53.4332°N 2.3440°W | |
OS grid reference | SJ 773 930 |
Location | Church Lane, Ashton upon Mersey, Sale, Greater Manchester |
Country | England |
Denomination | Anglican |
Website | St Martin, Ashton upon Mersey |
Architecture | |
Status | Parish church |
Functional status | Active |
Heritage designation | Grade II* |
Designated | 11 November 1966 |
Architect(s) | W. H. Brakspear, George Truefitt |
Architectural type | Church |
Completed | 1887 |
Specifications | |
Materials |
Lymm sandstone Slate and tile roofs Timber-framed top stage to tower |
Administration | |
Parish | Ashton upon Mersey |
Deanery | Bowden |
Archdeaconry | Macclesfield |
Diocese | Chester |
Province | York |
Laity | |
Organist(s) | Jan Archer |
Churchwarden(s) | Margaret Holt, Audrey Black |
St Martin's Church is in Church Lane, Ashton upon Mersey, a district of Sale, Greater Manchester, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Chester, the archdeaconry of Macclesfield and the deanery of Bowdon.
The first church, probably timber-framed, was built in 1304 on the site of an old Saxon burial place. In 1704 it was destroyed by a storm. A new church was built in 1714 for Joshua Allen. In 1874 a baptistery by W. H. Brakspear was added. In 1886, the turret and clock were removed and the following year a new tower was built, it was designed by George Truefitt for Sir Williams Cunliffe Brooks. In the same year a ring of 13 bells was installed and a new lych gate was built.
The church is built in Lymm sandstone with slate and tile roofs. Its plan consists of a wide nave of four bays, a south porch, a north baptistery, and a chancel with an adjoining tower containing a vestry to the south. The tower is square, its top stage being timber-framed. It contains a clock face to the south, gables on each side and an elaborate weather vane. The baptistry is octagonal with a pyramidal roof.