Description

910/2/146 ASHCROFT ROAD
12-MAY-77 (East side)
FORMER CHURCH OF ST JOHN THE DIVINE

(Formerly listed as:
ASHCROFT ROAD
CHURCH OF ST JOHN THE DIVINE)

GV II
DATES OF MAIN PHASES/ NAMES OF ARCHITECTS:
Begun in 1881-3 to designs by J T Micklethwaite and S Clarke, but not completed until 1901-4. Converted in 2004 for use as an arts and performance space.

MATERIALS:
Red brick with very limited Ancaster stone dressings. Slate roofs.

PLAN:
Partially aisled nave (western 3 bays only), chancel, SE organ chamber and vestry.

EXTERIOR:
A severe, French-influenced lancet style with good brickwork. The W end has a central buttress topped by a blocky bell turret. On either side is a three light window with stepped lancets within a single, pointed arch. Plain, round-headed doors in the W ends the aisles. There are similar 3 light windows and brick buttresses on the side elevations. The E wall is blind. Gabled, half-timbered oriel on S side.

INTERIOR:
A large, open space dominated by the tall arcades with octagonal piers. The arcades are of 8 bays, but only the western 3 bays open into proper aisles. The piers of the eastern 5 bays are freestanding, but have a wall immediately behind them. The W responds of both arcades are long to create internal porches in the W ends of the aisles. There is an embattled cornice with fleurons in the chancel.

PRINCIPAL FIXTURES:
Polygonal C19 font rood beam with a cross and a stone altar on a raised platform. Otherwise the fittings have been removed.

HISTORY:
Begun in 1881-2 to accommodate the rapidly growing population of Gainsborough. The original plans were for a 6-bay aisled and clerestoried nave, 2-bay aisled chancel and a W tower, and the blind, unfinished aisles in the chancel and eastern part of the nave reflect this ambition. In the event, however, only the body of the chancel and eastern 4 bays of the nave were built in 1881-2; the western part of the nave, including the partial aisles, was added in 1901-4. The architects for both phases were the highly regarded church architects J T Micklethwaite (1843-1906) and Somers Clarke (1841-1926). The church became redundant in 2002 and was converted to an arts and performance space in 2004.

SOURCES:
Pevsner, N and Harris, J., Buildings of England: Lincolnshire (2002), 295
Lambeth Palace Library, Incorporated Church Buildings Society, 10340 and 10533

REASONS FOR DESIGNATION:
The former church of St John the Divine is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Plain and severe brick church designed by J T Micklethwaite and Somers Clarke, built in two phases 1881-3 and 1901-4.
* High quality 8-bay arcades internally, partially blocked and reflecting an unexecuted plan for a bigger church.
* Group value with the former vicarage (gv).

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26316858

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Derbyshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Devon (Pevsner Buildings of England)
• 
  Listed Buildings: The Law and Practice of History Buildings, Ancient Monuments and Conservation Areas
• 
  The Listed Buildings and Other Principal Structures at the Royal Gunpowder Mills Waltham Abbey
• 
  The green guide for historic buildings: how to improve the environmental performance of listed and historic buildings
• 
  Hertfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)