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January 11, 2024

Barton, Cumbria – St Michael’s (again)

Monday 8 January 2024 and I caught the train to Penrith for a few hours with Clare. We had a leisurely coffee and scone in Pooley Bridge, then drove up the road to St Michael’s church, Barton – and realised I had been here. It was almost a decade ago – https://www.northernvicar.co.uk/2013/12/11/barton-cumbria-st-michael/. I described it last time as “a wonderful, chunky church”. It still is. The porch was built in the C17 by Moses Sisson, although it contains earlier work and a C13 door. The shield of arms above the keystone was placed there for Sir James Lowther in...
Categories Cumbria/World War 1 Comments: 2
September 19, 2023

Leadgate, County Durham – St Ives

Sunday 17 September 2023, one of the Heritage Open Days. St Ives church, Leadgate, NZ130551, was buzzing. A talk was just starting, there were local history displays, some mining art, and a cup of tea available. Sadly there was no simple guide leaflet and no leaflet to take which might have told the punters something about what the church is actually doing (surely you have something to advertise when lots of new people are coming into church?). Bit frustrating, but I thought I’ll get enough information about the church from Pevsner. Having found my copy of Pevsner’s County Durham...
Categories Durham/Railway History/World War 1 Comments: 0
March 24, 2023

Langcliffe, North Yorkshire – St John the Evangelist

For the first week of February we had a lovely week in a cottage near Settle. On Sunday 5 February I called in at St John the Evangelist in Langcliffe because we saw a notice saying “books in church”. Unfortunately the real book lover couldn’t get in (according to the website they have a portable ramp for services). The church is at SD 823650, the website is https://www.achurchnearyou.com/church/6902/about-us/, but there is a huge amount of architectural detail at http://www.english-church-architecture.net/n%20york%20l/langcliffe/langcliffe.htm. Apparently the church “was paid for largely by John Green Paley J.P., a partner of the Bowling Ironworks Company and...
Categories World War 1/Yorkshire Comment: 1
February 23, 2023

Cawood, North Yorkshire – All Saints’

I continued along the B1223 to the village of Cawood. It looked lovely and I passed what looked like a castle. I found  All Saints’ church is beside the River Ouse at SE578377 – http://www.allsaintscawood.org.uk/. Not a lot of parking nearby, but I found somewhere to leave the car and walked up to the church. Very good little guidebook, written last summer. It points out that, although the church is beside the river, it is on the highest piece of land – a good place to keep watch. It is likely that Danish troops landed near here before the...
Categories World War 1/Yorkshire Comments: 2
February 9, 2023

Church Fenton, North Yorkshire – St Mary’s

February 1 2023 and I have an afternoon at Hannah’s in Yorkshire. I went for an explore and decided that first stop was Church Fenton. St Mary’s church is at SE515367. It is part of the Tadcaster benefice – https://www.tadcasterbenefice.org/st-mary-s-church-church-fenton. I parked outside and was pleased to see snowdrops just inside the gate – I have a few in my garden, but these are lovely. The first record of the parish is in a grant of hides (an old measure for land) made by King Edgar in 963 AD to Aeslac of Sherburn-in-Elmet. There is no mention of a...
Categories World War 1/Yorkshire Comments: 0
June 29, 2022

Derby, Normanton – St Giles

On Thursday 16 June 2022, the Feast of Corpus Christi, Deanery Chapter was at St Giles, Normanton – a church of a very different tradition to mine (you won’t find baptisms, weddings or funerals on their website – http://stgiles-derby.org.uk/). This church building dates to 1862, with additions in 1902/3. It was designed by F.J. Robinson, and built on the site of a Saxon church. In 2010 the pews were removed which gives a lovely flexible space, but what angered me was the focus of the church. The altar is blocked off behind noticeboards so we face a preacher, an...
Categories Derbyshire/World War 1 Comments: 3
August 26, 2021

Derbyshire – Smalley, St John the Baptist

One of our local retired priests put on facebook that there was a flower festival at St John the Baptist in Smalley – I thought we had a Diocesan communications department to tell us what is going on – so we went for a drive, it’s only a few miles away, SK 407446. They had a nice clear notice outside. There is a mention of a church and priest in the Domesday book, but it was a parochial chapelry for Morley until 1877. They have a yew tree in the churchyard which they claim is “the finest in the...
Categories Derbyshire/World War 1 Comments: 0
August 26, 2021

Orkney 2021 – Burray, St Lawrence

Thursday 17 June was a beautiful day. We went to St Lawrence church on Burray, the island we’re staying on. It’s down a lane off the main road at ND492964. I had rather hoped we could get down to the beach, but no. It is a beautiful churchyard – Orkney Islands Council (I assume) care for them extremely well. First I made a beeline to the War Memorial. I had read the cottage’s copy of “Broch Island, a history of the island of Burray in Orkney”, by J.M. Struthers, 2013, and purchased my own copy from Kirkwall Museum. It...
Categories Scotland/World War 1 Comments: 0
April 19, 2021

Normanton-on-Cliffe, Lincolnshire – St Nicholas

After a day at Belton House, lovely National Trust property, but the church was locked, we drove to Ancaster, where the church was locked. Then we headed up the A607 and in Normanton-on-Cliffe there was a CCT sign beside the road saying “church open” – SK 048463. Lovely to be able to enter a church (that isn’t my own), just somewhat ironic it is a closed parish church that is open! St Nicholas church – https://www.visitchurches.org.uk/visit/church-listing/st-nicholas-normanton.html. Apparently there are 24 CCT churches in Lincolnshire, that should keep me quiet. It’s a medieval church with C11 origins. Changes were made...
Categories Churches Conservation Trust/Lincolnshire/World War 1 Comments: 0
August 20, 2020

National Memorial Arboretum, Staffordshire – the Army

Let’s start this final section with one amazing memorial, then we’ll end our visit with another.  We should mention we enjoyed the gardens and the café – and look forward to coming back when the Remembrance section is open, an exhibition exploring how humanity remembers. There are also many memorials I didn’t photo, and others that I even failed to find (The Donor Family Network is an obvious one for me). We will be back. The Shot at Dawn memorial is one of those that makes you stand in silence. During WW1 309 British and Commonwealth soldiers were shot...
Categories Staffordshire/World War 1 Comments: 4