The beginning The church of St John the Divine had its beginnings in 1860 when a small room over a shop in Cawl Terrace was obtained by the Rev. T Wolstencroft, then curate of St Mary's Rawtenstall, to be used as a Sunday School. The next year, the room becoming to small, four new cottages in Albert Terrace belonging to Mr. J. H. Ashworth of Greenbank were converted into a Sunday School and service room. For the next eight years morning services were conducted here by laymen and afternoon services by the Rawtenstall clergy. From about 1879 the district was supplied by the Vicar of Rawtenstall with a Curate-in-charge and in July 1882 with the Rev Ezra Holliday in charge a day school was started. The following November with need for better premises the old Baptist Chapel with land in front was purchased for £1000. The Chapel was converted into schools and school church, and the land conveyed in the following year as the site for a new Church.

The Church

The new church was to be built of stone in the Decorated Style of English Gothic Architecture with a tower and spire and to seat 450 people at an estimated cost of £5,300. The corner stone was laid by Mrs. G. H. Rushton on 27th April 1889. A new parish was formed out of the parishes of St Mary's Rawtenstall, St Nicholas Newchurch and St James the Great Waterfoot. On the 13th June 1890, the church being completed, but without the tower and spire, was consecrated and dedicated by James Moorhouse D.D., the Lord Bishop of Manchester, with Rev. Ezra Holliday becoming the first Vicar.

The Church was served by the clergy of Newchurch from the summer of 1972 and became a joint benefice with St Nicholas on the 1st June 1973. The Church closed its doors in 1976.

The following Parish registers are held in the Diocese Archives at Manchester Central Library.

Baptisms 1886 - 1973
Marriages 1890 -1972 (Microfilm copy at Rawtenstall Library)

The Altar and south window c1930

War Memorial