Temple Street Baptist Church

Temple Street Baptist Church

This Baptist church was designed in 1889 by Edgar Wood and stands end-on to the main road. It is constructed of red, orange and yellow polychrome brickwork beneath Welsh slate roofs, with timber and iron framework. The building is organised with the pulpit at the south west end and the main entrance at the north east, with flanking aisles that contain separate schoolrooms.

The north east elevation to Temple Street features the main gable with a centrally placed round-arched entrance of original heavy paired doors. Above this is an arcade of nine round-arched windows flanked by buttresses of alternating bands of red and yellow tile. In the upper stage is a chequer pattern of red and white tile containing a large rose window. Flanking the main church gable are smaller aisle gables in red tile with a rectilinear white tile pattern above triple round-arched windows. Finials surmount all three gables, with the main gable bearing a four-tier finial.

The north west elevation comprises eight bays. The first five contain nine-light trefoil-headed lancets set in square-headed windows. The end three bays are slightly projecting and contain a plain entrance flanked to the left by a window with an inserted modern frame and to the right by a six-light lancet. A single-storey extension attached to the north west and a two-storey timber-clad building added to the south west end in the 1960s are not of special interest.

Internally, heavy double doors with ornate ledges open into a rectangular vestibule with side doors into the north east end of the church. The wooden panelled vestibule features applied feather banding and a series of lights forming its upper stage. The church interior is framed by timber and iron posts forming five bays that support the roof and internal subdivisions. The high ceiling is coved and painted plaster. The aisles are separated from the main body by wooden panelling, some with decorative frosted glass panels above, and wooden doors lead into small Sunday school rooms formed by subdividing the aisles. At least one schoolroom has fixed wooden seating around its sides and another contains a small fireplace. Pitch pine benches with close-boarded backs and curved ends run down the centre of the church, with flanking aisles providing additional occasional seating. The benches face a raised dais at the south west end, reached by side stairs and flanked by double doors on either side. The dais is enclosed at the sides and rear by a close-boarded rail with turned balusters. The inserted organ occupies much of the painted brick wall behind the dais, blocking some original windows at this end. Panelling of this wall mirrors the vestibule style with applied feather banding. The pulpit is formed of panels with quatrefoil decoration. Windows at the north east end contain art nouveau style stained glass.

This church was built in 1889 and appears on the second edition Ordnance Survey map of 1893. It represents the earliest known surviving example of the work of Edgar Wood (1860-1935), a nationally renowned architect born and educated in Middleton, Rochdale. After qualifying as an architect in 1885, Wood established a practice in Middleton before moving to Oldham and Manchester. Temple Street Baptist Church exemplifies his first phase of work, characterised by originality in design, the use of hard, resilient materials, and freedom from any particular fixed style. Wood went on to design many highly regarded buildings including the Grade II listed Silver Street Methodist Church, Rochdale (1893), the Grade II* listed Long Street Methodist Church, Middleton (1899), and his most celebrated Grade I listed First Church of Christ Scientist, Manchester (1903-7).