Church Of St Thomas Of Canterbury

The Church of St Thomas of Canterbury is a parish church with fabric dating back to the 13th century. The chancel and nave retain this earlier structure, although the nave was remodelled in the 15th century when the west tower was added. A restoration took place in 1867-8, led by R. D. Gould, which resulted in a complete rebuilding of the 13th-century north aisle.

The church is constructed from roughly coursed stone with ashlar dressings, and has slate roofs with coped gable ends to the chancel, featuring kneeler gablets and an apex cross. The west tower is of three stages without buttressing, topped by an embattled parapet. It has 4-centred arched heads to the bell-openings on each face, with one light infilled and fitted with louvres on each side. A semi-circular headed light with slate louvres is situated on the east side of the second stage, under a continuous dripmould. The west window is a Perpendicular 15th-century design of three trefoil-headed lights, incorporating iron stanchions and saddle bars. Below this is a round-arched west doorway with a roll-cavetto moulded surround, with rams horn stops to the base of the jambs; a shield and crests are displayed above, beneath a labelled hoodmould. A gabled south porch has a wrought iron apex cross and pointed arched inner and outer doorways, the inner doorway having a hollow-moulded surround and pyramid stops to the base of the jambs. A Perpendicular pointed arched three-light window is situated to the right, alongside two lancets to the chancel south side and a single lancet to the north side – all rebuilt in the 19th century. A 19th-century three-light stepped lancet window is present at the east end. The vestry has a two-light trefoil-headed window to its east side, and the north aisle has 19th-century lancets, comprising two of two lights and one single light. A two-light lancet at the west end of the north aisle has a quatrefoil traceried head.

Inside, the unmoulded pointed arch arcade has two bays, with a central circular pier. The nave has a ceiled waggon roof, and the chancel roof features a single triple-roll moulded arch braced truss, with medieval wall plates and carved decoration. A steeply pointed unmoulded chancel arch is also present. A 19th-century shoulderheaded piscina is set into the north wall of the chancel. Some medieval Barnstaple floor tiles remain in the north aisle. The nave furnishings are largely from the 19th and 20th centuries. The 13th-century font is of block-capital shape, with stiff-leaf decoration at the corners and a cable moulding to the waist. Stained glass is contained within the east window (dated 1901) and the south nave window, commemorating John Dennis of Kennacott, who died in Flanders in 1914.