|
 The
Celtic significance of St. Chad existing at this middle point between
the Goyt and Mersey should not be underestimated as he is the 'patron
saint of medicinal wells and springs' and points the way to such
'sacred Celtic waters' up the Goyt valley, proving further that
the Goyt was regarded as the source for the Mersey in ancient times.
Besides this there is also St. Chad's Holy Well nearby, with the
usual traditions of miraculous cures associated with such wells,
and his concentrated evangelisation of the Mersey and surrounding
areas which would have inevitably brought him into direct contact
with the very ancient sites and legends associated with the area
in the seventh century (600 AD to 700 AD). He would have used these
associations with great sympathy in his dealings with the 'old religions'
and their sites. Above: Chadkirk altar
|
Archaeology
It
is from this period that the oldest surviving structures in the building
date being the black and white Tudor north and east walls of the chancel
and the roof trusses. After this date the building declined until
William Webb recorded it in 1621 AD with the words "At the foot of
Werneth Low, towards the Merzey, lies an old dearn and deavly chapel,
so people call desert places out of company and resort; called Chad
Chapel, where seems to have been some Monkish cell". So bad was the
decay that it may have been used as a cow shed during this period
! The chapel was then "raised out of its ruins in 1747" according
to an old sign over the door, the bell is inscribed "1750 God be with
us all" and the rest of the building dates from this quite recent
point onwards. Sadly excavations in 1994 failed to locate any evidence
of a Saxon chapel but building and grave digging may have removed
all early traces and, in plan, it does resemble other known Anglo
Saxon churches. Above: Inside Chadkirk