CHURCH HISTORY - THE BUILDING

The most important part of any church history is the history of the people who worshipped here over many generations. One day we will write that history! For now here is a little taste of the history of our church building and the changes that have been made over the years.

St. John's was built in 1829 and consecrated in 1830.  It is a Waterloo Church, in that it is one of a number of churches financed with money donated by grateful allies to celebrate the defeat of Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815. Waterloo churches were built in and around the industrial areas of the north where needed.  The architecture was similar for them all in that there were no transepts, just a nave, a chancel and most of them had balconies, as does St. John's, of varying sizes. As you enter the church, don't miss the picture of St. Guthlac who first preached the Good News about Jesus here in Saxon times; Golcar takes its name from him.
	In the balcony, facing the altar is the present Binns organ, built in 1903. It is of great interest to organists and organ lovers both locally and further afield, in that it is one of the few Binns organs in this country to retain the original mechanism. Although in need of some restoration work, it is still a fine three-manual organ, which can fill the church with its wonderful music.
St. John's has many fine stained glass windows, not least of which is the wonderful East Window, which can be now seen in all its glory since the high altar was moved from the wall and the reredos dropped down.  One can also enjoy the excellent carving, most of which is on the balcony edge.
	The graveyard is large and well-kept, thanks to a team of volunteers. It is also an open graveyard, which means that there is still enough land left for new graves.  Also, there are many graves at the front of church which are actually bricked vaults for up to five people which means there are also still many spaces left there for family burials.

We get many enquiries from people who are interested in Genealogy. Unfortunately most of our old registers are archived at the West Yorkshire County Archive service for safe keeping, although the burial book from 1912/14 is still in current use, and can be accessed by making an appointment with the parish administrator. The other registers can be accessed on microfiche from the Local History section of Huddersfield Library.

RECENT CHANGES

Almost 20 years ago a community room, kitchen and toilets were made at the back of the church, when the entrance reverted to its original position. In 2011 we continued our building development by removing the downstairs office which means the community room is flooded with natural light. We also enlarged and completely refitted the kitchen to professional standards.

After thorough consultation with the wider community and our church members we took the decision to remove the pews in the nave of the church, replace the floor with a beautiful light oak floor all on one level and replace the pews with comfortable chairs. We now have a large flexible space which can be used for different kinds of worship and we are able to use it for events such as Dinner with Friends, large concerts and many other uses.