Bollington, Cheshire Genealogy

History
Bollington owes both the churches of St John the Baptist (Church of England) and St Gregory (Roman Catholic) to the donation of land by the owner of the Shrigley Estates, Mr Turner.

St John The Baptist was created as a parish in 1842 from Prestbury Ancient Parish.

St Gregory's Roman Catholic Church was built after some years ministry of Father Hall using rented cottages form 1830.The chance to build a permanent church came in 1834: Mr Turner, a non-Catholic, who had acquired the Shrigley estates from the last of the Downes family and built a new Hall, gave land for Anglican and Catholic churches - St John's and St Gregory's. Finance came from the Cheshire Fund, helped by the generosity of John, Earl of Shrewsbury, whose donation of £100 was allocated to St Gregory's in 1835. Fr Hall ministered to the people of Bollington, travelling by horse from Macclesfield. On one occasion, to the consternation of all, the horse returned on its own - Fr Hall had been attacked and thrown into a pond. This intrepid priest, who was to remain in Macclesfield for 55 years, until his death, served the people of Bollington for about ten years, though other priests gradually came on the scene: Fr Roger Glassbrook, Fr Edward Kenrick and Fr John Reah , this last-mentioned being the first resident priest in 1845.

Church of England Records
Prestbury, St. Peter (C of E). The ancient parish church for Bollington. Bollington, St. John the Baptist (C of E). Built in 1834, becoming the parish church in 1842. Registers of Baptisms 1834–1975, Marriages 1838–2003 and Burials 1835–2004 have been deposited at the Cheshire Record Office. Bollington Cross, St. Oswald (C of E). Built in 1892 as a chapel of ease to St. John the Baptist. Registers of Baptisms 1908–2001 and Marriages 1937–1988 have been deposited at the Cheshire Record Office.