Winteringham Local History and Genealogy at winteringham.info

Winteringham Church

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A 300 year old Winteringham mystery!

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Winteringham Church is dedicated to All Saints. The Church is mentioned in Domesday Book, but it is thought that there was a stone church in the village long before that, the stones of which now form part of the Tower. If you look carefully at the tower you will also see at least two stones on the outside of the north wall, which have evidence of fluting, and some believe shows that they were used in Roman buildings! The building as we now see it was built and altered in many stages, as shown in the table below:


	Northern arches and aisle Southern arches and aisle Chancel (replacing an earlier one) South Transept Tower Clerestory Font, South Porch, North Vestry, roof pitch Heating by hot water	12th century 1180 1200-1250 1250 1400-1450 15th century 1850-1851 1899




One or two of the changes made in 1851 can be observed by comparing this detail of a print made at that time with the ‘modern’ church in the photograph above. The easiest to spot, and the one changing the appearance of the church most markedly, is the shallower roof line before the alterations - which can still be seen from within the church by standing in the chancel and looking towards the tower.

The bells in the belfry of Winteringham Church 1966 Plan of the bell frame
The Tower is 64 feet in height, and includes 5 bells, (pictured) arranged as shown in the diagram on the right. At the time this photograph was taken in 1966, just one bell was able to be rung - and that with a Heath-Robinson fix on a broken bell-wheel!


		The Church Tower seen from the west (left) and the recumbent figure in the chancel, believed to be a Marmion - the Lords of the Manor at Winteringham (below)

The Churchyard was extended westwards in the year 1912, plans of the extension being drawn by Mr Z G Yewdall who was an engineer and draughtsman associated with the construction of the North Lindsey Light Railway. It was he who submitted a successful tender for the provision of the iron fencing around the perimeter of this extension at a cost of 6/- per yard. (Information kindly supplied by Geoff Greaves Churchwarden)

In 1143 the village church saw a ceremony confirming William de St Barbara as the Bishop of Durham when he was met at Winteringham by monks bearing the news as he was returning from attending a council in London. The position of Bishop of Durham was, at that time, not just ecclesiastical. Known as the ‘Prince Bishops’ they had many secular powers as well as those of Bishop, and could - and did - defy the King of England on occasions.

The Marmions also had royal connections, and the recumbent figure in the Church is believed to have been one of these


	The South Transept Windows, photographed by Yvonne Ingram, Australia

		Below is a copy of the dedication which took place on Sunday 18 May 2003 by the Bishop of Lincoln, the Rt Revd Dr John Saxbee. ' Peter Gunning is remembered with love and respect in this group of parishes and beyond for his ministry during eleven years as vicar. He began the restoration of this window to mark the Millenium here in Winteringham. John Bratton was a faithful member of this congregation. As a crew member of a Lancaster bomber during the war, John was conscious of the loss and destruction suffered on both sides. The piecing together of the fragments of this window, blown out in an air raid, stood for him as a symbol of the need for reparation and reconciliation.'


	Taken by Ken Jacobs on Easter Monday 2005 (28th March), the altar with the stained glass windows behind.


	Taken on the same day as the altar photograph, this shows the font, with the window dedicated to Henry Kirke White behind.


	Other links to the Church on this site ... Photograph of the Church Choir in the mid-fifties, wearing their new gowns

Winteringham Church Door The beautiful door to the church.

A 300 year old Winteringham Mystery

In 1724, Dr Stukeley visited Winteringham, and wrote the following*:-

The present Win-
"teringham is still a corporation, and the
"mayor is chosen only out of one street, next
"the old town, where was a chapel; the bell of
"it now hangs in a wooden frame, by the pillory,
"and makes a most ridiculous appearance.

What kind of chapel was this, and where was it situated? Did it belong to Winteringham Church? Was it part of the Priory lands close by the Grange? We’d be grateful for any information which could throw some light on this intriguing snippet from Dr Stukely’s observations.

It MAY have been a wayside chapel such as this one in Neuf Marche, France (from which the Winteringham Newmarch family originated).

Neuf Marche Wayside Chapel

Have you tried the other Winteringham Websites?
Parish Council (includes current news items, photographs, weather forecasts, calendar of events, etc etc) Don Burton World of Nature, Photo Archive (modern photographs of the village), What the Papers have said about Winteringham (since July 2004), High Resolution Historical Photographs, Winteringham Film Archive, Winteringham Football Club




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