Church of All Souls, Bolton

The church was built between 1878 and 1881 and was paid for by Thomas Greenhalgh, an Evangelical mill-owner. Greenhalgh had inherited the money from his brother Nathaniel, who died in 1877 aged 60. It was one of two churches in the area financed from this inheritance, the other being St Saviour's. The total cost of the church, including fittings, stained glass, the organ, and the boundary walls, was £23,000 (equivalent to £ in ). The local population had grown during the second half of the 19th century, and the church was intended to serve the people working in the nearby mills. It was designed by the Lancaster architects Paley and Austin. The church was planned to seat a congregation of about 800, giving them all a good view of the proceedings and an opportunity to hear the sermon. The contractors were Cordingley and Stopford of Manchester. The church was consecrated in 1881 by Dr J. Fraser, Bishop of Manchester. Few changes have been made to the building since then. A war memorial was added to commemorate the parishioners who died serving in the First World War. ==Architecture==

Exterior All Souls is constructed in brick with dressings of Longridge sandstone. The interior is dressed with Stourton stone. The roofs are of slate. Its plan consists of a five-bay nave, a two-bay chancel with a canted apse, an organ chamber to the north, a chapel and vestry to the south, and a west tower with a protruding north porch and stair turret. There are no aisles. The tower has four stages. To provide the wide interior, the timber roof has a complex structure with rib vaulting, carried on octagonal shafts between the windows. On the sides of the chancel are two-bay arcades. The reredos is in stone and consists of traceried panels, the outer ones inscribed with prayers and other text. The stained glass in the apse depicts scenes from the New Testament; it was designed by the architects and made by Clayton and Bell. The windows are dedicated to the memory of Thomas Greenhalgh's brother, Nathaniel. The stained glass in the east chancel windows is dated 1887 and depicts Faith and Hope; it was made by Burlison and Grylls. There is a ring of eight bells, all cast in 1881 by John Taylor & Co of Loughborough. ==Recent history and present day==

During the 20th century, the size of the local population declined, and in 1962 the parish was combined with that of St James on Waterloo Road. The church closed in 1986 and was vested in the Churches Conservation Trust. ==See also==