The present Parish Church of St. Mary’s in Whitchurch is not as perhaps as old as you may think.  Built between 1883 and 1884, to the designs of Mr J Pitchard, it replaced a much older and now demolished church of St. Mary, which exits today as a memorial garden in Old Church Road.

Records have shown that a church has existed in Whitchurch since around the 12th century, with the Old St. Mary’s originally being built in the 14th century.

Moving forwards again to Whitchurch at the end of the 18th century, we see a mainly agricultural village, (noted for its pigs!), with a population of around 250 crammed into the 60 or so cottages and houses in the area.  The population increased due to the building of the nearby Melingriffith tin plate works, attracting labour to the area and swelling the population to 696.  Still, St. Mary’s remained the only church in Whitchurch with seating for around three hundred and services being conducted in English only.  With the increase in population came the introduction of non conformity and more places of worship were built in the area.

1845 saw the creation of Whitchurch as an independent ecclesiastical parish with a perpetual curacy answereable to the Bishop of Llandaff.  The first vicar of the parish of Whitchurch was Revd E P Thomas until his retirement in 1867.  He was followed by Revd D T Davies who died in 1875.  The next to become vicar was Revd J T Clarke who remained as the incumbent for the next 28 years.  Through the fund raising efforts and appeals of Clarke, the new church was built on its current site as we see it today.  Sadly the old church fell into a state of disrepair and had to be demolished in 1904.

So on 27th May 1885, at a cost of £3,559, the new church was consecrated for divine service.  With £2,400 going towards the structure, and the remaining £1,159 towards fittings and furnishings.  As the illustration indicates, St. Mary’s has a tower in the south west corner, and this aside is very similar to building style to the old church.  Like the old building, St. Mary’s has a nave, chancel and sanctuary, with sculptured windows also similar to its predecessor.  Going inside we find walls made of Pennant sandstone with tiled flooring and a fine wooden roof in the bowed boat style.  The original yellow bricked walls have since been cemented over and whitewashed, but these are not the only additions to have been made over the years.  Due to charitable donations made from church members and friends of the church, St. Mary’s has seen the addition of a North Aisle, and an altar made of marble and stone dating to 1936, thanks to the efforts of the St. Mary’s Ladies Working Party.  The magnificent crucifixion that greets visitors to the church in the east window was built in memory of Mr W R Davies the managing director of the tin plate works.  (The old window now resides in the vestry.)  Generous donations also include the clock set in the tower and a peal of bells that can be heard for miles around before services.

This information was kindly put together by a Parishioner of St. Mary’s Church, and we greatly acknowledge his hard work.

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St. Mary’s Church is situated on the corner of Church Road and Penlline Road.  This is the main crossroads in Whitchurch village and it is controlled by traffic lights.

Coming from Junction 32 of the M4 you need the head for the A4054 for Whitchurch.  Following this road down the hill you will eventually arrive at a roundabout.

Go straight on at this roundabout where you will pass Orchard Drive on the right (which is where the Vicarage is situated) and just a little further on you will see the church at the crossroads.

If you turn right at this junction into Church Road you will also see the Church Hall on the left hand side.  Outside of peak hours you can also park in Church Road close to the Church.