St Thomas the Apostle
Heptonstall, Yorkshire
A lovely place, where American poet Sylvia Plath is buried; the new churchyard was recently used in the filming of the BBC series Happy Valley and the old graveyard in the BBC series The Gallows Pole.
Built in 1832 and originally a Chapel of Ease within the Ancient Parish of Halifax, St James the Great became a parish church in its own right in 1844. Originally a plain rectangular whitewashed building, the chancel and next door school were built later and the nave was remodelled. The plain glass in the nave windows was replaced with stained glass by Heaton, Butler, and Bayne of Covent Garden. The chancel includes an Italian oak reredos which was unveiled on Easter Day in 1934.
The first two Vicars of St James, Revd Sutcliffe Sowden, and Revd George Sowden, were sons of Samuel Sowden, a tenant farmer of Anne Lister, and mentioned in her diaries. Both men were acquainted with the Bronte family and Sutcliffe conducted not only Charlotte's wedding and funeral, but also the funeral of Patrick Bronte.
Other features include a wall painting of the annunciation, choir stalls by HP Jackson of Coley, and a war memorial in the churchyard. St James loves to welcome visitors and hosts occasional coffee mornings and open church for walkers, cyclists and visitors.
Hebden Bridge has a regular train service from Leeds and Manchester, and a good bus service from the station to Todmorden, which passes the end of church lane and stops nearby. The church is a 10 minute walk from the town centre. Five hundred feet above St James is the parish church of St Thomas the Apostle Heptonstall, a sister church in the benefice, which is also of literary and historical interest.
