St Anne's Church is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

Parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

Blackburn Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the River Ribble, Ribble Valley, east of Preston ...

, Lancashire, England. It was founded in 1848, built in 1926 and designed by the architectural firm of Hill, Sandy & Norris of Manchester, who were also behind the construction of St John the Baptist Church in Rochdale. It is situated on the corner of Prince's Street and Paradise Street, next to St Anne's Catholic Primary School and close to King Street in the centre of the town. It was built in the

Lombard Romanesque The term Lombard refers to people or things related to Lombardy, a region in northern Italy. History and culture * Lombards, a Germanic tribe * Lombardic language, the Germanic language spoken by the Lombards * Lombards of Sicily, a linguisti ...

style. In December 2000 the church suffered an

arson Arson is the act of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, watercr ...

attack which gutted the building; it was rebuilt in 2004.History
from SacredHeartBlackburn.org.uk, retrieved 14 February 2016

History

St Alban's Church

St Alban's Church was the first Roman Catholic church to be built in Blackburn since the

English Reformation The English Reformation began in 16th-century England when the Church of England broke away first from the authority of the pope and bishops Oath_of_Supremacy, over the King and then from some doctrines and practices of the Catholic Church ...

. It was from St Alban's Church that St Anne's Church was founded. In 1773, a pair of cottages on Chapel Street were turned into a chapel. In 1781, a purpose-built chapel was constructed next to the converted cottages. It was paid for by a Mrs Mary Hodgson and cost £400. In 1819, Fr James Sharples became priest of the Blackburn

mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

. In 1823, he bought a site for a larger church in the Larkhill part of Blackburn. From 1824 to 1826, a church was built on that site. It was a Georgian building with a

Romanesque Revival Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended t ...

tower. In the 1880s and 1890s, plans were made to build a larger church on the site by the priests of the church, Dean John Newton (died 1896) and Canon Peter Lonsdale. The architect was

Edward Goldie Edward Goldie (1856–1921) was an English ecclesiastical architect who was notable for building Roman Catholic churches, mainly in the form of Gothic Revival architecture. He was the son of George Goldie.Bishop of Salford The Bishop of Salford is the Ordinary (church officer), ordinary of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Salford, Catholic Diocese of Salford in the Province of Liverpool, England. With the gradual abolition of the legal restrictions on the activities o ...

Herbert Vaughan Herbert Alfred Henry Joseph Thomas Vaughan (15 April 1832 – 19 June 1903) was an English prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Westminster from 1892 until his death in 1903, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1893. ...

. On 8 December 1901, the church was opened. The firm behind the construction of the church was John Boland of Blackburn, and the building cost £20,000.Blackburn - St Alban
from

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...

, retrieved 15 February 2016

Foundation of St Anne's Church

From 1848, a

was established in the centre of Blackburn from St Alban's Church. That year a building housing a church and school was built on Paradise Street. It was designed by Weightman and Hadfield. In August 1849, it opened. In 1852, the church was rebuilt, so that it could accommodate 500 people. In 1869, this church was extended by adding a new

sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred space, sacred place, such as a shrine, protected by ecclesiastical immunity. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This seconda ...

mortuary chapel A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type of ...

, aisle and

baptistry In Christian architecture the baptistery or baptistry (Old French ''baptisterie''; -4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ... ''baptisterie''; Latin ''baptist ...

.Blackburn - St Anne
from

, retrieved 14 February 2016

Construction

In 1925, the foundation stone of the present church was laid by Fr William Shine. It was constructed on the site of the building that housed the church and school in 1848. It cost an estimated £20,000, had a capacity of 800 people and was designed by the Hill, Sandy & Norris architectural firm. Fr Shine died a few days after laying the foundation stone. The next priest for the church, Fr Thomas Henshaw, became the

Bishop of Salford The Bishop of Salford is the Ordinary (church officer), ordinary of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Salford, Catholic Diocese of Salford in the Province of Liverpool, England. With the gradual abolition of the legal restrictions on the activities o ...

after a few months. His successor, Fr Thomas Singleton, oversaw the remaining construction. At midnight of 24 December 1926, the church was opened. Over the course of the next two years, the interior was added to with the installation of side altars dedicated to the

Sacred Heart The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus () is one of the most widely practised and well-known Catholic devotions, wherein the heart of Jesus Christ is viewed as a symbol of "God's boundless and passionate love for mankind". This devotion to Christ is p ...

and the

Blessed Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

altar rails The altar rail (also known as a communion rail or chancel rail) is a low barrier, sometimes ornate and usually made of stone, wood or metal in some combination, delimiting the chancel or the sanctuary and altar in a church, from the nave and ot ...

, a

sanctuary lamp Chancel lamp in the Rotunda of Mosta, Sanctuary Basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady, Malta A sanctuary lamp, chancel lamp, altar lamp, everlasting light, or eternal flame is a light that shines before the altar of sanctuaries in many Jewish and ...

, marble

pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, accesse ...

organ Organ and organs may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function * Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body. Musical instruments ...

and

baptismal font A baptismal font is an Church architecture, ecclesiastical architectural element, which serves as a receptacle for baptismal water used for baptism, as a part of Christian initiation for both rites of Infant baptism, infant and Believer's bapti ...

. In 1932, the

high altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

was installed. In 1947, the church that was built in 1852 was turned into a

parish hall A church hall or parish hall is a room or building associated with a church architecture, church, generally for community and Charitable organization, charitable use. In smaller and village communities, it is often a separate building near the ...

. In 1966, the presbytery was replaced by the present one. It was designed by the firm, Desmond Williams & Associates from Manchester.

Rebuilding

In 2000, with the depopulation of the town, plans were drawn up for the church to be reduced in size. In December 2000, the church was damaged by an

attack. A campaign was started with the aim of raising £600,000 to repair the church and reduce it in size, so that it could accommodate two hundred people. The west side of the church was rebuilt, and the area in front of the church was redesigned.

Parish

Sacred Heart Church

St Anne's Church is served from Sacred Heart Church in Blackburn. In 1900, Sacred Heart Church was founded as a

from St Anne's Church, by Fr Edward Woods. On 5 May 1900, the foundation stone of Sacred Heart Church was laid by the

John Bilsborrow John Bilsborrow was bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Salford from 1892 to 1903. Bilsborrow was born in Singleton, Lancashire on 20 March 1836. He was ordained priest on 26 February 1865 at the age of 28. Following his ordination, he was ...

. The church was originally located on the corner of St Silas' Road and Leamington Road in the town. On 14 July 1901, the church was opened by Bishop Bilsborrow. On 29 October 1905, Sacred Heart Church became its own

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

. On 15 October 1937, the foundation stone of the present Sacred Heart Church was laid by Bishop Henshaw. On 30 September 1938, the church was opened and the first Mass there was said. Good Shepherd Church - geograph

Times

St Anne's Church has one Sunday

Mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

, at 12:30 pm. Sacred Heart Church has two Sunday Masses at 6:15 pm on Saturday and at 10:30 am on Sunday.Directory
from

Diocese of Salford The Diocese of Salford () is a Latin diocese of the Catholic Church centred on the City of Salford in Greater Manchester, England. The diocese was founded in 1852 as one of the first post-Reformation Catholic dioceses in Great Britain. Since 191 ...

, retrieved 14 February 2016 St Alban's Church is part of the St Alban and Good Shepherd Parish together with Good Shepherd Church on Earl Street, Blackburn, and Holy Souls Church on Whalley New Road in Brownhill. St Alban's Church has three Sunday Masses at 6:30 pm on Saturday, and 9:00 am and 11:15 am on Sunday. Good Shepherd Church has one Sunday Mass at 10:15 am. Holy Souls Church has two Sunday Masses at 10:00 am and 5:00 pm.

References

External links

*
Sacred Heart and St Anne Parish site

St Alban and Good Shepherd Parish site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blackburn, Saint Anne AnnesChurch Roman Catholic churches in Lancashire Romanesque Revival church buildings in England Roman Catholic churches completed in 1926 1848 establishments in England Arson in 2000 2000 fires in Europe 2000s fires in the United Kingdom Building and structure arson attacks in England Rebuilt churches in the United Kingdom Religious buildings and structures in the United Kingdom destroyed by arson Roman Catholic Diocese of Salford Edward Goldie church buildings 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United Kingdom