St Thomas’ Church, South Wigston is a

Grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

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 ...

in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

South Wigston South Wigston is a large village to the south of Leicester, England. It is outside the city boundary, forming part of the Oadby and Wigston district of Leicestershire. The population at the 2011 census was 7,490. Geography and administration So ...

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

History

The foundation stone was laid on 26 July 1892 by Thomas Ingram and it was consecrated on 2 February 1893 by Rt. Revd. Mandell Creighton the

Bishop of Peterborough The Bishop of Peterborough is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Peterborough in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers the counties of Northamptonshire (including the Soke of Peterborough) and Rutland. The see is in ...

. It was built in brick with a Westmorland slate roof by Henry Bland to the designs of the architect

Stockdale Harrison Stockdale Harrison (1846-10 November 1914) FRIBA was an architect based in Leicester best known for Usher Hall, Edinburgh. History Stockdale Harrison was born in November 1846, the son of William Harrison (1813-1873) timber merchant, and Mar ...

at a cost of £3,600 (). It was long and wide. The tower was added in 1901.

Parish status

The church is in a joint benefice with *All Saints' Church, Wigston Magna *St Wistan's Church, Wigston Magna

Organ

The church contains a pipe organ dating from 1895 by Stephen Taylor of Leicester. It was paid for by Thomas Ingram at a cost of £500 () and dedicated on 26 September 1875 by Bishop Mitchinson. A specification of the organ can be found on the

National Pipe Organ Register The British Institute of Organ Studies (BIOS) is a British organisation and registered charity which aims to promote study and appreciation of all aspects of the pipe organ. Further, it acts as a lobbying body to raise awareness of organ issue ...

The Bells

A peal of eight bells was cast in 1901 by

John Taylor & Co John Taylor Bell Foundry (Loughborough) Limited, trading as John Taylor & Co and commonly known as Taylor's Bell Foundry, Taylor's of Loughborough, or simply Taylor's, is the world's largest working bell (instrument), bell foundry. It is locat ...

. On 26 December 1904, seven ringers set a new world record when they rang a peal of 17,184 double Norwich Court Bob, breaking the record set in 1898 at Kidlington by the Oxford Guild. One of the ringers broke down after 10 hour 35 minutes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Thomas Church South Wigston Church of England church buildings in Leicestershire Grade II* listed buildings in Leicestershire Churches completed in 1893