Church of St Mary in the Baum

About

The Church of St Mary in the Baum or Church of St Mary-in-the-Baum is a church in the town of Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England. Commissioned in 1738, and opened in 1742 as a chapel of ease, the chapel was extended in the 19th century. In the very early 20th century the church authorities determined to construct a new building and they commissioned Ninian Comper to undertake the task. Comper designed a completely new church to an unusual plan, due to the constriction of the urban site. He incorporated elements of the original chapel into the new design. St Mary's remains an active parish church in the Anglican Diocese of Manchester. It is a Grade I listed building.

History: The first church on the present site was a chapel of ease opened in 1742. The name supposedly derives from the fields of Melissa plant which grew on the site. The land and much of the funding was supplied by Samuel Chetham, of Turton Tower and Castleton Hall and High Sheriff of Lancashire in 1738. The church was extended in the 19th century but by the 20th was in a state of disrepair. The parish authorities determined that repairing the structure would be more expensive than the construction of a new building...