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St Mary and St John the Baptist, Pleasington, Roman Catholic

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St Mary and St John the Baptist,
Sandy Lane,
Pleasington
Lancashire
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Cemeteries

The church has/had a graveyard.

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Church History

It was founded before 1817.

 

The extremely handsome church of unusual style at Pleasington near Blackburn was built as a thanksgiving offering by a local gentleman, Mr. John Francis Butler, whose family came from the Fylde. The building was completed in 1819 and was the work of a Manchester Catholic architect called John Palmer, who showed what could be done in Gothic before Pugin's Gothic revival. From the point of view of architecture, the church is one of the most interesting in the diocese, and obviously impressed the imagination of our grandfathers to earn the name of "Priory." Furthermore, the church has captured something of the devotional and impressive atmosphere of the ancient sanctuaries.

The church has even more of interest than architecture. Under the altar lies buried the body of a Roman martyr, St. Publianus. An inscription on the covering states that the body was given in Rome to John Butler, the builder of the church. Although the seals are intact, the certificate has been lost, unless it is in the papers of the Butler Bowden family.

The church has some beautiful old silver plate, notably a monstrance and thurible bearing the de Hoghton crest. At one time such was the danger from thieves that anything of value had to be removed at night from the church.

The candlesticks on the high altar are tall and of solid brass so that it is as much as a man can do to lift them. They bear the arms of the Cliftons of Lytham.

Fr. Edward Kenyon, a friend of the Founder, was here from 1816 to 1828, when he retired to Woolston.

The following priests have served the parish during its long existence: 1828-1834 Fr. P. Orrell; 1834-1839 Fr. T. Holden; 1840-1845 Bishop Sharples; 1846-1878 Fr. John Peduzzi, R.D.; 1879 Fr. D. O'Brien; 1880 Fr.T. Quick; 1881-1890 Fr. H. Mulvany; 1890-1915 Fr. J. Lawless; 1915-1830 Fr. Anthony Van der Beek; 1930-1932 Fr. J. Bannon; 1932 Fr. Herbert Bonney.

From the time of its building, the church has had a cemetery attached, and Catholic families for miles have made this the burial place of their dead. No doubt the dignity and beauty of the ''Priory'' and the pleasantness of the natural setting have made this a place of peace that attracts visitors and pilgrims all the year round.

Taken from "Salford Diocese and its Catholic past", a survey by Charles A. Bolton, a Priest of the above Diocese. Published 1950 on the First Centenary for the Diocese of Salford.

This site provides historical information about churches, other places of worship and cemeteries. It has no connection with the churches etc. themselves. For current information you should contact them directly.

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Church Records

Whilst every effort has been made to record exact details of record office and library holdings you are recommended to check with them before visiting to ensure that they do hold the records and years you wish to examine. Similarly check with transcript publishers to ensure they cover the records and years you require before making a purchase.

Original Registers

Baptisms
Marriages
Burials

Copies of Original Registers

Baptisms
Marriages
Burials

Indexes

Baptisms
Marriages
Burials

Baptisms

1817-1906

Original Registers of baptisms 1817-1906 held by Lancashire Archives - RCPL

1817-1906

Copy of Original Register of baptisms 1817-1906 held by Lancashire Archives - MF 9/202

1906-1918

Index of baptisms 1906-1918 held by Lancashire Archives - Searchroom

1947-1962

Copy of Original Register of baptisms 1947-1962 held by Lancashire Archives - RCSF 2

Marriages

1846-1852

Original Registers of marriages 1846-1852 held by Lancashire Archives - RCPL

1846-1852

Copy of Original Register of marriages 1846-1852 held by Lancashire Archives - MF 9/202

1854-1982

Index of marriages 1854-1982 held by Lancashire Archives - Searchroom

1894-1918

Index of marriages 1894-1918 held by Lancashire Archives - Searchroom

1947-1954

Copy of Original Register of marriages 1947-1954 held by Lancashire Archives - RCSF 2

1961-1962

Copy of Original Register of marriages 1961-1962 held by Lancashire Archives - RCSF 2

Burials

1819-1899

Original Registers of burials 1819-1899 held by Lancashire Archives - RCPL

1819-1899

Copy of Original Register of burials 1819-1899 held by Lancashire Archives - MF 9/202

1899-1933

Index of burials 1899-1933 held by Lancashire Archives - Searchroom

1899-1980

Original Registers of burials 1899-1980 held by Lancashire Archives - RCPL

1899-1996

Index of burials 1899-1996 held by Lancashire Archives - Searchroom
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Maps

It is located at SD6428526652 (Lat/Lon 53.735025, -2.542888). You can see this on maps provided by:

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