Church Of St John The Evangelist

SD 52 SE WHITTLE-LE-WOODS PRESTON ROAD

3/165 Church of St. John the Evangelist - - II

Church, 1880-2 by Myres Veevers and Myres of Preston, on site of chapel of 1830. Tooled stone rock-faced tower, 2-span slate roofs with gable copings bearing crosses. Nave with south aisle, north transept and chancel with 3-sided apse; battlemented tower in north-east corner of transept and chancel. Early English style, steeply pitched roofs, moulded string courses, gableted buttresses; most windows are coupled lancets which have hoodmoulds with figured stops. Three-stage tower has angle buttresses, a 2-storey stair turret projecting on east side (with a foliated cap); an arched north doorway of 3 orders incorporating shafts with foliated capitals; 3-light louvred belfry windows, gargoyles, embattled parapet with panels of blind quatrefoils, and crocketedpinnacles with finials. The adjoining transept has angle buttresses and a gableted doorway with a moulded arch and foliated shafts. Nave (north wall) of 3 bays with buttresses, bracketed eaves, coupled lancet windows; there is a basement entrance below. Aisle (south wall) is 5 bays with similar buttresses and windows; to 2nd bay a large gabled porch, timber-framed in Jacobean style, on a high stone plinth, entered through a wide opening on the east side, the inner moulded arched doorway containing double doors. West end of 2 unequal gables; west window of nave has 5 stepped lights with cusped heads, the lights having hoodmoulds with foliated stops; both gables have a plate- traceried rose above the window. At east end of aisle is an organ-house in matching style. Chancel has prominent buttresses and three 2-light windows with quatrefoils in the heads. Interior: conjunction of nave with large aisle succeeds in creating a broad internal space: 5-bay south arcade of plain columns with heavily foliated capitals (all different) and matching respond at west end supporting moulded 2-centred arches; similar 2-bay arcade to north transept; rounded chancel arch has good Perpendicular-style screen (1905), with coved canopy and elaborate carving. At west end, memorial window (1899) to Thomas Richard Crosse includes portrait of its subject in military uniform at top of northernmost light: Crosse family of Shaw Hill (q.v.) were principal benefactors of Church.

Listing NGR: SD5785021522