Grade II
Church of St Joseph
Caroline Street, Wigan
Description
Roman Catholic church with the attached presbytery. 1878, by Goldie and Child
See Newspaper Article - Opening of the Church - History
Further information supplied by Rita Fell, from The Builder July 1877 - Link
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Comment by Lewis Bates from facebook Nov 2021
Abandoned St Joseph’s RC Church on Caroline Street closed its doors to worshippers more than 20 years ago and these pictures reveal it has since deteriorated into a truly sad condition.
However, any hopes of a revival for the building, which was once located in Wigan’s thriving Irish quarter, currently appear slim.
The building was sold by the Archdiocese of Liverpool at auction soon after it stopped holding services in 1995 and its current ownership is unclear.
It has even been suggested that the decision to place it on Historic England’s register of listed buildings could have worked against it by limiting the redevelopment options.
The church was opened in 1878, although a smaller Roman Catholic place of worship and a Methodist chapel had previously stood on the site.
Planning permission was obtained back in 2002 to convert the building into a rock climbing centre but nothing came of it.
