Parish dedicated to St Conchan though the church is now dedicated to St Peter (post 1833).
See Parish Index page for description, links to 19th century directories etc.
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The origins of the old church which stood some 50 yards to the north of the present church dated back to the 12th Century. By 1760 the walls and roof had become dangerous such that by 1771 it had been decided to build a new church. However nothing was done until the time of that great Manx church builder Bishop Ward who, as usual, commissioned a design from John Welch (Hanson and Welch) by which time the old church was grossly inadequate for the rapidly growing village. A foundation stone was laid in 1830 on glebe land below the old church but across the road close to the marshy ground at the bottom of the butt. However pressure from the parishioners forced a move to a more prominent position adjacent to the existing churchyard and, after a rededication, the church was completed in 1833, built by John Samuel Skillicorn. |
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Grid Reference SC401781 |
The church was refurbished in 1863; it was the first church on the Island to be lit by electricity which was installed in 1897 to celebrate Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee and supplied by the Isle of Man Tramways and Power Company.
The churchyard is the burial place of many prominent families of
the area e.g. the Heywoods (of the Nunnery), Beckwiths (Foxdale
mines), Pollocks (of Derby Castle) and the Woods family including
G.W.Wood of IoMRly fame..
Some excerpts from the Parish Register have been published.
Kniveton, G.N. (Gordon) The Onchan Story 1992 Manx Experience
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see also[Feltham's Tour & Memorial Inscriptions] |
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Any comments, errors or omissions
gratefully received The
Editor |
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