At the commencement
of the 19th. century there was no Church of England place of worship
in the town. Hyde was linked with the St. Mary's , parish church
of Stockport and the incumbent is still the Patron of St. George's.
Worshippers would therefore go to Stockport, Mottram or Denton Old
Church. The increasing population of the town during the expansion
of the cotton industry, led to the need for a church in the town.
Captain Clarke,with others, was involved and his half brother George
gifted the site for the church. The erection was begun in 1831,
the foundation stone being laid by Captain Hyde John Clarke J.P.
on the 28th. of May. The cost, £5.000, was mainly guaranteed by
the Church Commissioners, and the finished building was consecrated
October 29th. 1832 by the Bishop of Chester.
The church is
fortunate in having a peal of eightbells and the first peal was
rung 20th. March 1853, by a team of ringers from Mottram Parish
Church. The church had a nave and two aisles, was galleried all
round and held 1200 persons in total. Behind the altar are recesses
with mosaics, and the organ was by Samuel Renn, a Manchester organ
builder. There were stained glass windows the East Window being
particularly fine. The Hearse House was built in 1841
Unfortunately
in 1980 extensive deterioration of the fabric meant that the church
was closed, services were then held in the new school hall. The
stained glass windows were removed. The War Memorial window may
be seen in the Manchester's Museum, Ashton under Lyne. It was a
great pity that the pews were chopped up and that the organ was
destroyed. You see the organ was constructed by a Manchester organ
constructor and there were only two of his organs available in Manchester.
Negotiations
then took place to determine the fate of the building. The Church,
Hearse House, and Lych Gate were listed. Listing prevented the demolition and
the church was reroofed and altered inside to its present state.
St. George's had never had a large Parish Room, (many parishoners
remember the old parish room on Edna Street). In the church the
internal columns were removed and the rear of the building converted
to a large room on the ground floor with a larger room on the first
floor, making the usage of the whole building more flexible. The
bells and the reredos at the back of the altar were retained. Four
stained glass windows have been replaced with a further two to be
replaced when funds allow.
The Church
was re-ordered in 1990
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