St John's Church, Old Colwyn, is on Station Road,
Old Colwyn, in
Conwy County Borough
Conwy County Borough ( cy, Bwrdeistref Sirol Conwy) is a county borough in Wales. It borders Gwynedd to the west and south, and Denbighshire to the east. Other settlements in the county borough include Abergele, Betws-y-Coed, Colwyn Bay, Conwy ...
,
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
. It is a member church of the Aled Mission Area, in the archdeaconry of St Asaph and the
diocese of St Asaph. St John's was built as the daughter church of St Catherine's Church, Abergele Road, Colwyn.
It is designated by
Cadw as a Grade II*
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
.
History
The church was built for the English-speaking community when the services at St Catherine's were conducted in
Welsh. It was designed by the
Chester firm of
Douglas and Minshull. The foundation stone was laid in 1899 by Mrs Eleanor Frost who also paid for many of the church furnishings, including the
reredos, altar, rails, screen and the
pulpit. The tower was added in 1912 after the death of John Douglas, when the firm was known as Douglas, Minshull and Muspratt.
[
]
Architecture
The external walls are built in local Penmaen limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
with Hollington sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...
dressings. The internal walls are in ashlar Hollington sandstone.hammerbeam
A hammerbeam roof is a decorative, open timber roof truss typical of English Gothic architecture and has been called "...the most spectacular endeavour of the English Medieval carpenter". They are traditionally timber framed, using short beams ...
. The stained glass in one of the windows in the south aisle
An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, certain types of buildings, such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, par ...
is by Charles Kempe
Charles Eamer Kempe (29 June 1837 – 29 April 1907) was a British Victorian era designer and manufacturer of stained glass. His studios produced over 4,000 windows and also designs for altars and altar frontals, furniture and furnishings, lich ...
.[
]
External features
The entrance gate to the churchyard is a Grade II listed building.[
]
See also
*List of new churches by John Douglas
John Douglas (English architect), John Douglas (1830–1911) was an English architect based in Chester, Cheshire. His output included new churches, alterations to and restoration of existing churches, church furnishings, new houses and alterati ...
References
External links
St John's Church, Old ColwynSt John's, Old Colwyn Find us on Facebook
{{DEFAULTSORT:Old Colwyn, Saint John's Church
The Church of St John the Baptist
Grade II* listed churches in Conwy County Borough
Gothic Revival church buildings in Wales
19th-century Church in Wales church buildings
Old Colwyn
John Douglas buildings
Churches completed in 1903
Churches completed in 1912
1912 establishments in Wales