St John's Church, Dowlais

St John's Church (2012)

St John's Church is a defunct Grade II listed church in the village of Dowlais, near Merthyr Tydfil in Wales.

The church was built in 1827 for local ironworks manager Sir John Josiah Guest, at a cost of £3000. It was gradually completely rebuilt later in the century, in a Gothic style, finishing with the main nave and aisle in 1893/4.[1] Sir John (d. 1852) was buried in an iron coffin in the chancel under a red granite slab.[2]

The church ultimately closed its doors in 1997. In early 2015, it was listed for sale at an initial price of £50,000.[2] It was subsequently earmarked for £400,000 of Welsh Government grants to support its repair and redevelopment.[3]

  1. ^ "Church of St John, Dowlais". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 16 January 2016.
  2. ^ a b Sophie Gidley (16 February 2015). "Former church for sale in Merthyr Tydfil with stunning stained glass window, a Donny Osmond link – and an auction guide price of just £50,000". Wales Online. Retrieved 16 January 2016.
  3. ^ Katie Sands (29 October 2015). "Church that hasn't been used for 20 years to get £100k cash boost to help convert it into 20 flats". Wales Online. Retrieved 16 January 2016.