St Joseph's Church, Bishop Thornton

St Joseph's Church is a Catholic church in Bishop Thornton, a village in North Yorkshire, in England.

The existence of Catholic worship in Bishop Thornton is attested from at least 1746. In 1790, a presbytery was built for Richard Talbot and Charles Saul, on land donated by Stephen Ingilby. It has a decorative staircase leading up to a windowless room, where it is presumed that mass was said. In 1809, a church was built onto the presbytery. It was restored by Weightman & Brown from 1980 to 1981, and the whole structure was Grade II listed in 1986. It is the oldest purpose-built church in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Leeds.[1][2]

Both the church and presbytery are built of gritstone with tile roofs. The presbytery has two storeys and attics, and three bays, a central porch and mullioned windows. The church to the right has four bays, round-headed windows, a porch at the east end, and a gable cross. Inside, most of the furnishing date to between 1875 and 1929, the period when Herman Geurts served as priest. The stained glass dates from the mid-20th century, and is by Hardman & Co. The church also contains a slab from the Mediaeval altar of Walworth Chapel.[1][2][3]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Historic England. "THE PRESBYTERY AND ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH OF SAINT JOSEPH (1149847)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Bishop Thornton – St Joseph". Taking Stock. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  3. ^ Leach, Peter; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2009). Yorkshire West Riding: Leeds, Bradford and the North. The Buildings of England. New Haven and London: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-12665-5.

54°03′56″N 1°36′11″W / 54.06552°N 1.60318°W / 54.06552; -1.60318