St Oswald’s Church in Winwick will be looking to welcome visitors for a heritage weekend in a bid to raise money to preserve its future.

On Saturday, September 9, Bishop of Warrington Beverley Mason will open up the Grade-I listed church.

The Golborne Road place of worship was first recorded in the Domesday Book in 1086, and parts of the current church date back to the 13th century.

One of the items on display at the open weekend will be the marriage lines of Edward Smith – the captain of the Titanic, who married a farmer’s daughter at the church in 1887.

Two members of the British Titanic Society, Jean Legg and Caroline Heaven, will be at the church with a collection of Titanic memorabilia.

Jean’s father was the last surviving member of the Titanic when he died aged 89 in 1983. He was working as an 18-year-old steward when the vessel sank in 1912.

Warrington Guardian July 2023