Sandy Lane Church
... or to give it the correct name, The Church of St Mary the Virgin & St Nicholas. It was built as a mission church in the 1890s and is unusual in that it was build of timber and thatch, whereas most mission churches of that era were built of iron and are now known as the 'Tin Tabernacles'. The cost to build was £175 and it was originally planned to seat a congregation of about 50 people. The timbering is in an A form with 6 pairs of trusses resting on brick sleeper walls and th e double-walls are filled with six inches of sawdust. It has a steep thatched roof which was last re-thatched in 2013. It is now a Grade 2 listed building and is in the village of Sandy Lane, which is designated as a Conservation Area. It is believed to be unique in that it is the only thatched, wooden building built as a place of worship in all of England. The church was originally dedicated to St Nicholas, the church opened on the Feast of Saint Nicholas. I...
