The project, which is called the Tasmanian Pictorial Church Index, is the result of several decades of documentation and research undertaken by historians Maureen Martin Ferris and Sandra Duck.

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The app will eventually have more than 4000 images and data on around 1500 churches across Tasmania, King Island, Flinders Island as well as Norfolk Island.

It's the result of a mammoth effort spanning decades involving travel around the state and hours of research, photographing and documenting.

And it's all been undertaken purely on a voluntary basis by Mrs Martin Ferris and Ms Duck.

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Mrs Martin Ferris said the project was initially conceived as a book, but they soon realised that they would never complete a book because the pair kept finding new churches.

That's when her son Toby Martin, who is a programmer, stepped in and suggested an app format. The public can use the app to research churches in their area or churches that hold special meaning to them, Mr Martin said. It provides photos, history as well as a timeline of the church's use even if it has been converted to other uses.

The app also documents churches that have not survived and tries to provide as much information as possible about where these churches were located when they were still standing including photos and newspaper clippings.

Mr Martin said it's an important tool for churches that haven't survived and which still hold special meaning for someone because a parent or grandparent may have married in that church.

Mrs Martin Ferris also hopes that the project will be of use to the general public and tourists.

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She's also concerned about the loss of church buildings which are of immense heritage value.

"We're going to lose them without a doubt," she said.

"It's good to record how they are now or how they were."

The current version of the Tasmanian Pictorial Church Index can be accessed online.

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