Church Of St Mary

The Church of St Mary is a building with a long history, incorporating elements from the 14th century to the 19th century. A lean-to vestry was added to the south side of the chancel in the 14th century. The nave and chapel date to 1610, marked by plaques indicating this date. The tower was built in 1729, and the aisles were added between 1818 and 1819.

The tower has a base with cyma moulding. The west entrance features a Tudor arched head with a roll-moulded surround and three pointed overlights, set within a hollow-chamfered square-headed architrave and a label mould. A round-headed west window has three round-headed lights and two roundels, with a torus surround and a mask above. A frieze inscribed "CONDITUM ANO DOMINI 1729" is positioned above a cornice. The bell stage has Doric flat pilasters and an entablature, featuring two-light round-headed bell openings, louvred lights, and clock faces; the eastern clock face has an angel key. The parapet has balustrading and three finials to each corner. The spire has three tiers of lucarnes and sill courses. The aisles are characterized by cornices and embattled parapets, with three-light windows featuring intersecting tracery. The clerestory has three-light square-headed windows. The chancel has south-facing windows similar to those in the aisles, and an east window of four lights with uncusped Perpendicular tracery. A vestry to the south was added in 1900, and the north vestry has square-headed windows.

Inside, the church has five-bay arcades with octagonal piers and single chamfered arches. The west wall features stucco tracery panelling. The roof is supported by alternating tie beam and hammer beam trusses, along with braces, pendants, and curved wind braces, and it is also dated. Wall plaques display armorial bearings of local families and the construction date, mirroring the roof’s dating. A timber screen was added in 1921. There are stalls dated 1636, showcasing fluting and poppy-headed bench ends. Timber panelling includes a frieze. A panelled timber reredos was installed in 1891. An early 17th-century altar rail with three sides of turned balusters is present. A round, plain font is possibly Anglo-Saxon in origin. A font from 1755 has a baluster on a scroll base supporting a shallow reeded bowl. A monument to John Ogle, who died in 1612, includes an upright effigy in contemporary dress. Other 18th- and 19th-century monuments include the monument to T. Barrow, who died in 1751, by D. Sephton, and the monument to Sir W. Atherton, who died in 1803, by Sir R. Westmacott. The east window in the south aisle, dating to 1879, was created by Morris and Co. and features grisaille flower quarries and three small figures. An east window from 1840, depicting classically draped figures under gothic canopies, was removed after damage in 1985.