Church Of St Oswald

The Church of St Oswald is a Grade II* listed church located on Front Street in Sowerby. The church features a Norman south doorway adorned with two orders of colonnettes, scalloped capitals, and intricate designs including intertwined trails, zig-zag patterns, and beakhead motifs in the arch. It has a squat three-stage tower, which includes two-light openings and castellations, added later, while the rest of the structure likely dates back to the 15th century.

The main body of the church is constructed from sandstone ashlar with a stone slate roof and is designed in a Neo-Norman style. It has a cruciform layout, consisting of an aisleless nave, a crossing, transepts, and a short chancel. The interior features an elaborate wooden roof structure designed by E B Lamb in 1842.

There are three significant periods of construction: the main structure, the wooden lantern added between 1879 and 1883 by Hodgson Fowler, and the north aisle, which is nearly as wide as the nave and has three bays with elongated octagonal piers and a pointed barrel vault. The north aisle also includes three-light windows with trefoil heads beneath straight heads, designed by Brierley in 1902. A later vestry is attached to the west of the aisle, and Jacobean panelling can be found near the altar.