The Roman Catholic Church of the Sacred Heart, Accrington in the County of -- Lancashire --

	The Roman Catholic Church of the Sacred Heart

	The Roman Catholic Church of the Sacred Heart

	The Annual Procession at Sacred Heart - 1905

	The Annual Procession at Sacred Heart - 1914

The Roman Catholic Church in Accrington was founded in 1851 as St Oswald’s and Sacred Heart Church was built in 1869. The church was closed in 2003 due to structural problems and then demolished in 2009. The church does not have a graveyard.

The Jesuit Fathers, who had long been in charge of the church at Clayton-le-Moors, eventually handed over this mission to the Bishop and started to build up another some miles distant at Accrington. A piece of land was given for the purpose by Henry Petre of Dunkenhalgh, thus continuing the long tradition of generosity to the church of the Dunkenhalgh family.

This first parish in the Accrington district was in Hyndburn road in the nearby parish of Church, and from 1852 to 1869 remained here under the name of St. Oswald's. Then Fr. Maguire obtained a piece of land in a more central position, and here was built a new church in 1868 which was rededicated to the Sacred Heart. Sacred Heart was opened on August 5th, 1869. The new church was a building of fine proportions in the style of thirteenth-century Gothic, built at a cost of £7,000.

	The original Church dedicated to St Oswald

In 1931 a chapel-of-ease was founded at Huncoat. From the founding of the Church until 1958 it was under the direction of Jesuits. When they left the area, it was handed over to the Salford Diocese.

Source: Accringtonweb.com

	The Interior of the Sacred Heart