In 1653, the process of dissolving the Cistercian Abbey at Rushen in Ballasalla began and the Catholic Faith in the Island died. For the following three hundred years, fitful attempts to revive that faith continued.
It was not until the year 1826 or thereabouts that the first post-reformation Catholic Church was built on the Island by an Irish Jesuit named Father Matthew Gahan. On the outskirts of Castletown on land costing £16 this present church was erected at a total cost of £650.
Dedicated to St Mary, after the title of the Rushen Abbey of St Mary, the windows depicting the Annunciation and the Resurrection, the work of the Clarke Brothers of Dublin, are part of its beautiful features. The greatest tribute that this church pays to its Catholic forebears is that it still stands proudly as the first Post-Reformation Catholic Church on the Isle of Man.
The cache
Go to the above co-ordinates where you will find a bright yellow sign attached to the wall.
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On the first line, how many letters in the first word = A
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On the first line, how many letters in the second word = B
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On the first line, how many letters in the third word = C
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On the second line, how many letters in the first word = D
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On the third line, how many letters in the first word = E
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On the third line, how many letters in the second word = F
The final co-ordinates are at :
N 54 0C.(A+B)(B+D)(B-A)
W 004 3F.ED(D-E)
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For full information on how you can expand the Church Micro series by sadexploration please read the Place your own Church Micro page before you contact him at churchmicro.co.uk
See also the Church Micro Statistics and Home pages for further information about the series.
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Please bring your own pen.