Church, Church Kirk 1897

Photo ref: 40131

More about this scene

St James' Church Kirk is a place of worship of very ancient origin. 'Church' is a Northumbrian word and 'Kirk' is Mercian; both words mean 'a place of worship'. Coupling the two words together in this way is the only example of its kind in Britain, and the township around it adopted the name Church. It has been suggested that there must be strong reasons for the name, and the connections with St Oswald, the hero king of Northumbria, are the most likely. The tower of the church is early Perpendicular, and it was used as a watchtower by Rishton families during the Wars of the Roses. The nave was rebuilt in 1804, when an ancient mellow structure was exchanged for a more utilitarian design. The tower suffered a fire as recently as 1982, which caused internal damage, particularly to the bells and the clock. A redundant peal of bells was brought from Christ Church, Pendlebury to replace the damaged peal.