Church of St. Thomas a Becket and mounting block attached

TQ 967 265 5/118

SNARGATE FAIRFIELD Church of St. Thomas a Becket and mounting block attached

9.6.59

I Parish church C15, possibly on earlier foundations with C18 fittings. Reconstructed, and most of timbers renewed, in 1912-13 by W.D Caröe. Timber framed, clad 1912-13 in chequered red and grey brick with thin tiles to corbels (possibly replacing C18 brick-work). West gable end plain brownish-red brick. Wood shingled bell turret. East end of nave tile-hung above chancel, east end of chancel weatherboarded above wall-plate. Plain tile roofs.

Nave, incorporating west bell turret; south porch; small low chancel. Bell turret has pyramidal roof. Nave and chancel roofs gabled, chancel with decorative, possibly medieval, barge-boards. Leaded rectangular casement windows throughout church, except chancel east window which contains small quantity of stained glass; all 1912-13. Boarded outer and inner doors to porch, the former with thin tiles to head of architrave. Chequered red and grey brick mounting block to west end, probably 1912-13.

Interior: nave and chancel separately framed, with evidence for virtually closed close-studded partitions to west truss of chancel and to east truss of nave. Chancel of two timber framed bays, nave of two and half, with gunstock-jowled principal posts and some evidence for arch braces to wall-plates; walls otherwise rendered. Cambered arch-braced tie-beams, (those to chancel about seven feet from ground), braces chamfered, with solid spandrels and continued with chamfered fillets. Similar moulded octagonal crown-posts to central trusses of nave and chancel. Half bay to west end of nave, beneath bell turret, enclosed to north and south with close-studded partitions, each with door to east, leaving central area open to west gable end to contain font. On circular stone base with heptagonal plinth and base.

Fittings: Heptagonal ragstone font on circular stone base with heptagonal plinth and base; possibly C15, or possibly 1660s (J. Newman,1980). Altar rails: early C18 balusters with plain handrail; Laudian plan. Text boards to east end bearing Lord's Prayer, Creed and Decalogue. C18 box pews to nave and south side of chancel, with fielded panels except last pew to west on each side which are plainer. C18 three-decker pulpit, said to be the only one surviving in Kent. Nine oval text boards to nave, one dedicatory dated 1804.

The church is in an isolated position in the marshes and has no churchyard. Reference to a timber-framed church on the site, in poor condition, 1294 (E. Woodruff, 1917). Referred to by Hasted as built of brick and seeming to be "but of very modern date..." (Hasted). Photographs in west end of church showing work in progress 1912-13.

Listing NGR: TQ9720525992