St Helen’s Church, Witton in Northwich will once again be opening its doors to the public for Heritage Open Days 8-11th September this year.
Bell ringers at the church will be joining in the national ‘Challenge 500’ for Heritage Open Day on the evening of Thursday 8th September from 6-7pm, when it’s hoped that up to 500 churches across the UK will be ringing their bells to celebrate this increasingly popular weekend.
Dating back to at least 1350, St Helens Parish Church is the oldest building in Northwich. In medieval times Witton (originally Wychton meaning ‘Salt town’) was the residential area sitting above the salt works around the confluence of the rivers Weaver and Dane. Indeed the church’s slightly sooty exterior is the many centuries of salt-boiling in the town.
Fascinating church records describe many events in the town’s history, including outbreaks of plague and the garrisoning of troops during the civil war.
If you’d like to find out more about this beautiful building it will be open throughout the weekend with informal tours being arranged when required. Light refreshments will be available. Friday 9 September: 14:00 to 20:00, Saturday 10 September: 9:00 to 11:30 and then 15:00 to 17:00
http://sthelenwitton.org.uk/
www.heritageopendays.org.uk
Postcard image courtesy of cheshireimagebank.
