Edgar Wood Centre
| Edgar Wood Centre | |
|---|---|
 Side view of the church | |
  Edgar Wood Centre Location in Greater Manchester | |
| 53°27′28″N2°12′59″W/ 53.4579°N 2.2164°W | |
| OS grid reference | SJ 85729 95702 |
| Location | Victoria Park,Manchester |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Universal Church of the Kingdom of God |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Heritage designation | Grade I |
| Designated | 18 December 1963 |
| Architect(s) | Edgar Wood |
| Architectural type | Church |
| Groundbreaking | 1903 |
TheEdgar Wood Centreis a formerChurch of Christ, Scientistbuilding inVictoria Park,Manchester,England. The church was designed byEdgar Woodin 1903.Nikolaus Pevsnerconsidered it "the only religious building in Lancashire that would be indispensable in a survey of twentieth century church design in all England".[1]It is aGrade I listed buildingand has been on theHeritage at Risk Registerpublished byHistoric England.
History
[edit]The building was designed by the architectEdgar Woodfor the Christian Scientists' first church in Britain. Construction began in 1903–4. A shortage of space and money led to modifications to the design, and further work took place in 1905–7.[2]
Pevsnerdescribed the church as "one of the most original buildings of that time in England, or indeed anywhere".[3]The church was decorated by bronze lettering of parts of the Bible and works byMary Baker Eddy,an Arabic organ screen, and chairs designed by Wood.
It was designed by Edgar Wood inExpressioniststyle withArt Nouveaudetails, and later used as offices. It is in red brick, partlyrendered,with aslateroof. The building has a Y-shaped plan, with a main range and two splayed wings, and with a cylindrical turret with a conical roof in an angle. In thegableend is a semicircular-headed doorway with splayedsandstonesides, above which is acruciform-shaped window. At the other end is a porch with a segmental-headed arch. In the roof are talldormerwindows.[4][5]
The Grade-II listed gateway, designed by Wood in Art Nouveau style, is also red brick with some sandstone, and aslateroof. It consists of a segmental arch with a steep gable containing a small semi-cylindricaloriel window.At the sides arecantedbuttresseswith flat tops.[6]There is ablue plaqueto Wood on the gateway.
The church closed in 1971 and was heavily vandalised before reopening as the Edgar Wood Centre in 1975.[7]In turn, this closed in 2003, and the building was then used as aUniversal Church of the Kingdom of Godcentre.[8] The centre currently (2024) operates as a wedding and event venue under the name of Daisy Bank Manor. It was placed on theEnglish Heritage Register of Buildings at Risk 2007,[9]but is no longer listed as "At Risk". The church has been aGrade I listed buildingsince 18 December 1963.[10]Most of the furnishings and stained glass have been removed.[2]
See also
[edit]
Notes
[edit]- ^Hartwell 2002,p. 338.
- ^abHartwell, Hyde & Pevsner 2004,p. 469-471.
- ^Hartwell, Hyde & Pevsner 2004,p. 469-71.
- ^Hartwell, Hyde & Pevsner 2004,pp. 469–471.
- ^Historic England."Former First Church of Christ Scientist (1197770)".National Heritage List for England.
- ^Historic England."Arched Gateway to Former First Church of Christ Scientist (1292610)".National Heritage List for England.
- ^Cockburn, Mary-Ann. "'Wood' you credit it! ".Manchester Forum Summer 2003.Manchester Civic Society.
- ^Sunday, 5/2/2017."Addresses".Uckg.org.Retrieved5 February2017.
{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^"Edgar Wood Centre, Daisy Bank Road".Buildings at Risk Register 2007.English Heritage. 2007.Retrieved14 January2008.
- ^"The Edgar Wood Centre, Manchester".British Listed Buildings.
References
[edit]- Hartwell, Clare (2002).Manchester.Pevsner Architectural Guides. London:Yale University Press.ISBN0-300-09666-6.
- Hartwell, Clare; Hyde, Matthew;Pevsner, Nikolaus(2004).Manchester and the South-East.The Buildings Of England. London:Yale University Press.ISBN0-300-10583-5.
