St Martin German Street Oldham Road Ancoats Manchester

• Foundation: August 1871
• Consecrated: 6 January 1873. the Feast of the Epiphany

MANCHESTER. The foundation stone of the new church of S. Martin, in German street, Oldham-road, Manchester, was laid on Saturday last. The church consists of a lofty nave and chancel, with side aisles. A tower with slated spire is placed at the corner of German street and Primrose street. The main gable is finished in Pierre Point walling, with red Runcorn stone dressings to windows, doors, etc. The style of the architecture is a mixture of Early English and Early French. The church will accommodate 500 or 600 persons. The contract has been let to Mr. James Herd, of Cheetham, Messrs. Scarlett Brothers doing the stonework, and Mr. Higgins the excavating and brickwork. Messrs. Price and Linklater, of Manchester, are the architects. [Building News 11 August 1871 Page 108]

MANCHESTER - The first stone of St. Martin's Church, now in course of erection, in German- street, Oldham-road, has been laid. Many architects applied for the conduct of the new works; and, after consideration, the plans of Messrs. Price & Linklater, of Manchester and London, architects of the large church at Fallowfield, Menston Church, &c, were finally adopted. The church consists of a lofty nave and chancel, with side aisles. A tower with slated spire, is placed at the corner of German-street and Primrose- street, and contains the principal entrance and font. A second entrance from German-street is provided into the aisle next Silk-street. The main gable, in German- street, which is finished in Pierre Point walling, with red Runcorn stone dressings to windows, doors, &o., is pierced by a pair of traceried two-light windows, divided by a buttress surmounted by a canopied niche. Above the canopy, and between the heads of the main lights, is a large rose-window. Each face of the belfry-stage of the tower contains a two- light traceried window, filled with louvre boards, under a gablet. These gablets abut against octagonal turrets, occupying each angle of the tower, and terminating above in small spirelet roofs, with the main slated spire rising from their midst. The style of the architecture is a mixture of Early English and Early French. The chancel is placed at the end of the building remote from German-street, having the vestry, with heating-apparatus below, next Primrose Street, and the organ-chamber on the opposite side. The church will accommodate 500 or 600 persons, and a large number of the seats will be free and unappropriated. The contract has been let to Mr. James Herd (late Herd & Eadie), of Cheetham, Messrs. Scarlett, Brothers, doing the stonework, and Mr. Higgins the excavating and brickwork. [Builder 19 August 1871 page 652]

ST MARTIN'S CHURCH, OLDHAM ROAD, MANCHESTER - The laying of the first stone of St. Martin's Church, which is now in course of erection in German Street, Oldham Road, took place on Saturday afternoon last. Messrs. Price and Linklater, of 1 Market Place, Manchester, and Clifford's Inn, London, are the architects. The church consists of a lofty nave and chancel, with side aisles. A tower with slated spire is placed at the corner of German Street and Primrose Street, and contains the principal entrance and font. A second entrance from German Street is provided into the aisle next Silk Street. The main gable in German Street, which is finished in Pierre Point walling, with red Runcorn stone dressings to windows, doors, etc., is pierced by a pair of traceried two-light windows, divided by a buttress surmounted by a canopied niche. Above the canopy and between the heads of the main lights is a large rose window. Each face of the belfry stage of the tower contains a two-light traceried window, filled with louvre boards, under a gablet. These gablets abut against octagonal turrets occupying each angle of the tower and terminating above in small spirelet roofs, with the main slated spire rising from their midst. The style of architecture is a mixture of Early English and Early French. The chancel is placed at the end of the building remote from German Street, having the vestry, with heating apparatus, below, next Primrose Street, and the organ chamber on the opposite side. The church will accommodate 500 or 600 persons, and a large number of the seats will be free and unappropriated. The contract has been let to James Herd (late Herd and Eadie), of Clarence Street, Cheetham, Messrs Scarlett Brothers doing the stone work, and Mr. Higgins the excavating and brickwork.  [The Architect 12 August 1871 page 84

CONSECRATION OF ST MARTIN'S CHURCH, OLDHAM ROAD - The Lord Bishop of Manchester yesterday consecrated the new church of St Martin, German-street, Oldham-road. The site is bounded on the front by German-street, on the north by Primrose-street, on the south by Silk-street and at the rear by small houses and their yards, and is nearly square in shape. ...  Plans were made by several architects and those of Messrs Price and Linklater, architects of the Holy Innocents, Fallowfield, accepted by the committee, and the whole of the work has been carried out under their superintendence by Mr James Hurd, builder, of Clarence-street, Cheetham, Messrs Hibbert & Co doing the ornamental ironwork and gas fittings, and Messrs Scarlett Brothers the masonry. The church consists of a nave 30 feet wide, and aisles and chancel. The tower (the spire of which is still wanting) and main entrance are placed at the German-street end of the north aisle and nearest to Oldham-road. A second entrance is provided from German-street into the south aisle and each of these protected by an inner wooded porch for the protection of draughts The font (of different coloured stones) is placed under the arch leading from the tower to the north aisle. The chancel is the same width as the nave, but raised above it by several steps. North and south of the communion rail are placed the choir stalls, and between these and the nave are the pulpit on the south and prayer desk on the north, the two latter being of an ornamental character. The vestry lies to the north of the chancel and is entered from Primrose-street and the north aisle, and underneath comes the heating chamber. The organ is placed on the opposite side of the chancel to the vestry, under the slanting roof of the south aisle, and immediately behind the choir. The nave arcade consists of four bays, with coupled loft trefoil headed lights in the clerestory. The chancel window has five lights and a richly traceried head. The windows in the nave gable facing German-street are a pair of two-light traceried windows, separated by a buttress surmounted by a highly-wrought canopied niche and a large cinquefoil wheel window above the niche. All the benches are of pitch pine, varnished to match the doors and roof timbers, and are low and comfortable. The church accommodates 531 adults (320 of the sittings being wholly free and unappropriated) and cost, including the tower, under £3,000. The front next German-street and the tower are of pierrepoint walling, with stone dressings and window and door tracery.[Manchester Courier Tuesday 7 January 1873 Page 7 Column 3]

Reference    Building News 11 August 1871 Page 108
Reference    The Builder 19 August 1871 page 652.
Reference    Manchester Courier Tuesday 7 January 1873 Page 7 Column 3
Reference    Manchester Guardian Tuesday 7 January 1873 Page 6 Column 1
Reference    Building News 17 January 1873 Page 88
Reference    Builder 8 February 1873 page 110 consecration