Hidden in the depths of Cheshire’s countryside, yet only 100m or so from the M6, is a surprise, a bright pink iron church, St Philip, Hassall Green. Built in 1883 by Dixon’s of Liverpool (and probably white originally), it is a typical product of Britain’s portable building industry towards the end of the 19th century. It is also one of many iron churches, wooden village halls and other similar buildings I’ve visited over the last few years while researching my forthcoming (hopefully, peer review awaits) book on the portable building industry. Details: Lynn Pearson, Tin Tabernacles and Cosy Cottages: A History of the Portable Building Industry in Britain, 1850s-1930s, Liverpool University Press for Historic England, expected 2027/8. See https://www.lynnpearson.info/ for more details. I hope this little blog will show some of the illustrations that I couldn’t squeeze into the book – which has 200!
Copyright: All text on this blog, unless credited otherwise, is copyright Lynn Pearson 2026-7. All pictures on this blog, unless credited otherwise, were taken by the author or are from the author’s personal collection, and are copyright Lynn Pearson 2026-7.
