Our Lady of the Assumption Church, also known as St Mary'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 ...

Rhyl Rhyl (; , ) is a seaside town and community in Denbighshire in Wales. The town lies on the coast of North Wales, at the mouth of the River Clwyd. To the west is Kinmel Bay and Towyn, to the east Prestatyn, and to the south-east Rhuddlan ...

Denbighshire Denbighshire ( ; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, Flintshire to the east, Wrexham to the southeast, Powys to the south, and Gwynedd and Conwy to the west. Rhyl is the largest town, and Ruthi ...

. It was founded in 1851 by the

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

and was rebuilt in 1973. The original foundation was the first church the Jesuits built in Wales after establishing

St Beuno's College St Beuno's Jesuit Spirituality Centre, known locally as St Beuno's College, is a spirituality and retreat centre in Tremeirchion, Denbighshire, Wales. It was built in 1847 by the Jesuits, as a theology college. During the 1870s the Victorian poet Ge ...

in 1848.

History

Foundation

The Jesuits from

started a mission to the Catholics in Rhyl in 1851. Masses were held in a local

pub A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the late 17th century, to differentiate private ho ...

. Afterwards the local Assembly Rooms in the town centre (which is now occupied by

Jobcentre Plus Jobcentre Plus (; ) is a brand used by the Department for Work and Pensions in the United Kingdom. From 2002 to 2011, Jobcentre Plus was an executive agency which reported directly to the Minister of State for Employment. It was formed by th ...

) were rented to serve as a church and a school. In 1854, the Jesuits purchased a site on Ffynnongroew Road which could accommodate 150 people. In 1861, it became apparent that a church with a larger capacity was needed. In 1862, it was decided to build a church on the corner of Ffynnongroew Road and Wellington Road. The old chapel became a primary school.St Mary's History
from Rhyl Cytun retrieved 12 March 2014 On 3 March 1863, the foundation stone was laid by

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, and record producer. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by Honorific nick ...

Roman Catholic Bishop of Shrewsbury The Bishop of Shrewsbury is the Ordinary of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Shrewsbury in the Province of Birmingham, England. The diocese covers an area of of the counties and unitary authorities of Cheshire, Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin ...

. It opened on 8 December.History
from CatholicChurchRhyl.co.uk retrieved 20 October 2013 The church contained a window designed by John Hungerford Pollen, father of a Jesuit, also called John Hungerford Pollen.

Rebuilding

At some point in the 20th century, the Jesuits handed over the administration of the church to the Diocese of Wrexham who continue to serve the parish.Parishes
from Diocese of Wrexham retrieved 12 March 2014 In 1955, the old school that was housed in the original parish chapel had to be moved, as the building was in a state of disrepair. A new school, Ysgol Mair, was built and the old school became the church hall. In 1973, the church was considered to be structurally unsafe. A new church had to be built. The old church hall was demolished and it became the site of the new church.Ysgol Mair
retrieved 12 March 2014 Building work started that year and was completed on 21 December. The cost of construction was £230,000.

Parish

The 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 10:00am. There are weekday Masses at 9:30am from Tuesday to Friday.

References

External links