St Matthew's Church, Lightcliffe was designed by W. S. Barber to replace the Lightcliffe Old Church.
It was consecrated on 22nd September 1875.
Major Foster of Cliffe Hill Mansion contributed £15,000 to the construction of a new church for the district.
Several people were injured on 16th September 1873, as the foundation stone was being laid and the supports of the crane broke.
The tower is 98 ft high. Sir Titus Salt gave the pulpit which is made of Caen stone. Sir H. W. Ripley gave the clock. The pulpit and reredos are by John Birnie Philip. The font cover is by James Clinsty of Huddersfield. The capitals and other stone carving are by Charles Mawer of Leeds.
The Foster Chapel commemorates Major Johnston Jonas Foster and his family, and has the arms of the Foster family and the Stansfield family. Many members of the family are buried beneath the chapel.
In August 1899, there was a proposal for a new choir vestry at the church.
An organ, by Booth & Kirkland, was installed in 1874. This was subsequently moved elsewhere. In 1905, an organ was installed by W. Andrews. Details can be found in the National Pipe Organ Register.
The Watkinson Chapel and the stalls were carved by Harry Percy Jackson. A list of some of the Vicars of Lightcliffe is given in a separate Foldout
The records for the Church are held at the West Yorkshire Archive Service office in Wakefield (Collection WDP47): Baptisms [1703-1963], Banns [1845-1984], Marriages [1704-1989] and Burials [1704-1976].
See Friends of St Matthew's Churchyard, Lightcliffe, C. E. Fucigna, Lightcliffe Vicarage, St Aidan's Mission Church, Bailiff Bridge: War Memorial, St Matthew's Church, Lightcliffe: War Memorial, St Matthew's Church: Stone-laying accident [1873], St Matthew's Church, Lightcliffe: Graveyard and Watkinson Almshouses, Lightcliffe
Transcriptions of the Parish Registers are shown in the CD entitled Parish Registers: Saint Matthew's Church, Lightcliffe
This & associated entries use material contributed by Alan Longbottom
Page Ref: WW_6
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