St Catharine's Church, Scholes
St Catharine's Church is in Lorne Street, Scholes, Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Wigan, the archdeaconry of Warrington and the diocese of Liverpool. Its benefice is united with that of Christ Church, Ince-in-Makerfield. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated GradeĀ II listed building. It was a Commissioners' church, having received a grant towards its construction from the Church Building Commission.
St Catharine's Church, Scholes
Edmund Sharpe was an English architect, architectural historian, railway engineer, and sanitary reformer. Born in Knutsford, Cheshire, he was educated first by his parents and then at schools locally and in Runcorn, Greenwich and Sedbergh. Following his graduation from Cambridge University he was awarded a travelling scholarship, enabling him to study architecture in Germany and southern France. In 1835 he established an architectural practice in Lancaster, initially working on his own. In 1845 he entered into partnership with Edward Paley, one of his pupils. Sharpe's main focus was on churches, and he was a pioneer in the use of terracotta as a structural material in church building, designing what were known as "pot" churches, the first of which was St Stephen and All Martyrs' Church, Lever Bridge.
Sharpe, c. 1860
William Whewell, Professor of Mineralogy when Sharpe was studying at Cambridge
St Mark's Church, Witton, one of Sharpe's earliest churches
St Michael's Church, Kirkham showing Sharpe's steeple