Church Of St Mary

The Church of St Mary is an Anglican parish church, displaying elements from the 12th, 13th, and 14th centuries, with significant remodelling in 1870 by J. Fowler of Louth. The construction combines rendered flint with limestone and flint chequers for the tower and east end, covered by a tiled roof with coped verges and cross finials. The church comprises a 3-bay nave, a chancel, a west tower, and a north porch. The 19th-century timber-framed porch sits on a flint and stone plinth, and features a double-chamfered pointed archway to the inner doorway. The north side of the nave includes one tall chamfered lancet window and a pair of tall lancets separated by a buttress. The north side of the chancel has one chamfered square-headed window with a round-arched window positioned below. The east end exhibits angle buttresses and three stepped lancets. The south side of the chancel features two tall lancets flanked by a buttress, while the south side of the nave has one pair of lancets, another buttress, and a single lancet, with a double-chamfered pointed doorway to the left. The 3-stage west tower has diagonal buttresses. Its west window is a pointed arch with two cusped lancets and a hood mould, above which is a single pointed window. The bell stage incorporates a 2-light cusped window in a 16th-century style on the south and west sides, and a single window in the same style on the north side. The north-east side of the tower features a hexagonal stair turret with one lancet on its north face. Inside, the walls are plastered and the windows are widely splayed. A double-chamfered pointed arch with octagonal responds and capitals supports the tower. The north side of the tower has a Tudor-arched doorway and evidence of a removed floor, marked by stone corbels and a Tudor-arched doorway. The nave and chancel are covered by braced collar-rafter roofs, without bay divisions. The chancel arch is double-chamfered pointed with cylindrical half-shafts and capitals dating to the 13th century, and the chancel features a polychrome tiled floor. Notable fittings include a finely carved 16th-century pulpit with an inscription referring to Elizabeth I, dated 1580, and a cylindrical font likely dating to the 13th century. Victorian pews and choir stalls are also present. Memorials include a 14th-century cusped arch in the south wall of the nave and a low tomb with a figure incised on its lid. A 16th-century monument at the west end of the nave features Ionic columns supporting a frieze and cornice with finials and armourial shields in relief, commemorating the Webb family, including Maria Webb, who died in the 18th century. The east window contains unsigned stained glass from the late 19th century.