St Lukes Church, Abercarn, South Wales - August 2009 - Slightly pic heavy

The idea to go here came from this very board actually, so thank you to garethrhys for [ame="http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk/main/showthread.php?t=12013"]http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk/main/showthread.php?t=12013"]this thread[/ame], excellent picture, Id love to see more of your take on the place.

WARNING TO POSSIBLE EXPORERS - Drug paraphernalia was found at this site (Spoon and Needle wrapper)

A history again quoted from garethrhys' thread

"Only the soaring S tower is seen from afar. Yet to approach it and enter its windowless hulk is a powerful architectural experience. It stands high on a shoulder above the road, from which a long flight of steps wanders up to the towering W front. This is an awesome sight, sheer walls of hammerdressed local sandstone almost devoid of ashlar dressings....

The building was reported in 1958 to be suffering from severe subsidence and structural defects, which the substitution of flat concrete roofs failed to cure. It was closed c. 1980"

John Newman, The Buildings of Wales: Gwent/Monmouthshire"

Click to expand...

Here are a few of the pics, got a different view on the place.

Albums of main shots/overphotoshopped shots after pics if you wish to take a gander

The hidden church


Initial downstairs room


Stairway from downstairs to up





Ceiling above stairway



Side room downstairs




Opposite side room downstairs



Main Hall (upstairs)






















Photo up the bell tower


Roof




"I wuz here" photo




Album Links
Main Album
Over-Photoshop Album

I like churches this one has been seriously desicrated , looks interesting.

cool photos i'd love to go here and hope to soon...!

I reeally really enjoyed this place.

It was really small, such a weird structure though, it is very fortress like, hanging on the side of a mountain.

Downstairs is definitely a bit creepy, the amount of rubbish everywhere is a good sign that quite a few people know about the place, but I guess we were lucky not to bump into any unfavourable characters.

I cant figure out if I prefer b&w versions or colour of a lot of the hall pics. Wound me up thats why the albums have duplicates. They have a different feel to them. There was some great colour brought out from the place, especially with the pocketed lights from the crumbled roof.

One thing we didnt do was go up onto the roof, I went on the little platform bit, but being 6ft3, getting up the tiny stairs was HARD WORK, even as slim as I am. The stairs to the roof were pretty clear but I wasnt risking that one on my own.

Also there was a room or 2 off from the side of the hall, at the top end (maybe where the priest would get ready etc?) but there was literally no light in there (maybe 1 or 2 pics in the album), but we darent go i there given the stuf we found downstairs and the fact this was the firs ttime we had thought we should consider bringing a torch.... Ah well live and learn.

r3quiem said:

this was the firs ttime we had thought we should consider bringing a torch....

Click to expand...

1st rule of exploring - always carry a torch

Interesting explore. I'm not particularly taken with religion but there's something particularly sad about seeing a place like this descend to such an extreme opposite use. It must have seen so much come and go over the years - christenings, marriages, funerals - the whole cycle of life. I love churches - they really deserve better than becoming drug and graffiti dens for the local undesirables

Thanks for the mention

I went back here at night time not long ago after exploring some caves, but I didn't get any photos.
It was soooo creepy in the dark. I was pretty freaked but some of my friends were seriously bricking it! He though he could hear organ music playing haha. Who knows, maybe its haunted

I want to go back here soon, may even venture onto the roof. Although I know how tiny the stair case is and it's very cramped!

Good pictures too buddy