St John the Evangelist Church, on Church Avenue, will open its doorways to the general public on Friday (September 4) and Saturday (September 5) from 10am to 4pm.
Guests will be capable of see shows of memorabilia and historic artefacts, take heed to organ music and luxuriate in refreshments all through the day.
There can even be a raffle, whereas commemorative high quality bone china mugs and pens shall be available for purchase, with proceeds serving to to help the church and its anniversary celebrations.
The weekend will culminate in a Service of Celebration at 2pm on Sunday (September 6).
Bishop David, Archdeacon Simon Cook dinner, the Mayor of Bolton and native councillors are anticipated to attend.
The Grade II listed church has a historical past stretching again to the early nineteenth century.
St John the Evangelist was one of many first church buildings to be erected by the Waterloo Charity Commissioners, utilizing a part of a £1 million grant made by the Authorities.
Its basis stone was laid on March 4, 1824, by Benjamin Rawson, who donated the land.
The church was constructed at a price of £8,000 and initially supplied 620 free seats and 328 rented seats.
It was consecrated on September 9, 1826, by the Proper Reverend Charles James Bloomfield DD, Bishop of Chester.
The church’s first baptism passed off on October 15, 1826, carried out by the Rev R C Burton. The youngsters have been Thomas and Eliza Tildsley.
The primary interment passed off on the identical day and was that of John Arstall, a two-and-a-half-year-old youngster.
It was greater than a century earlier than the church recorded its first marriage.
On August 2, 1930, Thomas Pedley and Mary Robinson have been married in a ceremony carried out by the Rev T A Ashworth.
By the point of the church’s centenary, there had been 12,348 burials within the churchyard, 21,000 baptisms and 5,500 marriages.
Through the years, the church has additionally confronted numerous challenges.
Throughout a extreme storm in 1991, the stone cross on prime of the chancel wall fell to the bottom.
Subsidence had affected the soundness of the east wall and, in 1993, a ten-year programme of restoration work started.
The restoration undertaking value £400,000 and was aimed toward absolutely restoring the church.
St John the Evangelist has additionally performed a component in newer native historical past.
In 2008, the church was used as a filming location for the BBC drama All of the Small Issues, starring Sarah Lancashire.
At the moment, the Grade II listed constructing continues to require expensive repairs and upkeep.
The church is presently elevating funds for work to its roof and lychgate.
The anniversary celebrations will proceed past this weekend, with a 2 hundredth Anniversary guide as a result of go on sale in October.