Church of St Peter and St Paul, Rishton

Built at a cost of £8,00 the church was built of stone from local quarries and provided 574 sittings. Costs appear to have been a problem, the nave roof being finished 9 feet short of the intended height and the tower raised to a mere 45 feet. After 4 years the building was consecrated and dedicated to Saint Peter and Saint Paul on the 14th June 1877.  In 1904 the height of the tower was increased to about 100 feet but not to the original design.

NEW CHURCH, RISHTON - The foundation stone of the new church at Rishton has been laid. It will be built of stone, and constructed to accommodate 600 persons. The total cost is estimated at about £5,000. The architects are Messrs. Maycock and Bell, of Manchester, and the builder, Mr. Ramsbottom, of Accrington. [The Architect 7 June 1873 page 309]

RISHTON, NEAR ACCRINGTON —The ceremony of laying the corner-stone of a new Church of England, has been laid at Rishton, a thriving township near Accrington, by Mr. F. W. Grafton, of Heysham Hall, Lancaster. The church is estimated to cost £5,000, towards which Mr. Grafton has given the donation of £1,200, and the other promised subscriptions make the amount into £3,000. The Rev. Canon Birch, of Blackburn, presented a silver trowel to Mr Grafton; and that gentleman, in addressing the spectators, said that his sympathies had been aroused towards that place through the Rev. J. Allott, the minister, informing him that several of the members who were masons had built a large portion of their schoolroom free. He wished the Church of England to be free from the extreme parties within it, and that it would become more the church of the people and a true national church. He also hoped that the church would be opened free from debt, and that they would not have to resort to a bazaar to accomplish that end. The architects of the new church, which will be dedicated to St. Peter, are Messrs Maycock & Bell, of Manchester. [Builder 21 June 1873 page 493]

Reference        The Architect 7 June 1873 page 309 – foundation stone
Reference        Builder 21 June 1873 page 493
Reference        Pevsner. Buildings of England county: Lancashire: North