Church of St James, Didsbury

About

The Church of St James is a Church of England church on Stenner Lane in Didsbury, a suburb of Manchester, England. Together with Emmanuel Church on Barlow Moor Road, it forms the parish of St James and Emmanuel, Didsbury. The church is a Grade II* listed building.

History: In 1235 Albertus de Gresley granted land to Nicholas de Longford, Lord of the Manor of Withington, for the foundation of his own chapel in Didsbury. The first mention of the chapel appears in the records of the Lancashire Assizes when "William, Chaplain of Didsbury, came not on the first day and was fined." In 1352 the Bishop of Lichfield gave permission for the consecration of a churchyard for the burial of the victims of the Black Death. In 1541 the Diocese of Chester was formed, and the church was transferred from the Diocese of Lichfield. The parish covered an area from the River Mersey to Moss Side, and from Chorlton-cum-Hardy to Heaton Norris and Reddish. In accordance with the orders of Elizabeth I, all records of births, deaths, and marriages began to be kept in 1561. The original register is in the City of Manchester Archives and includes the record of the baptism of Saint Ambrose Barlow on 30 November...