Palmer Headstone About 37m North of the West Tower of the Church of St Nicholas is a Grade II* listed building in the Torridge local planning authority area, England. First listed on 21 January 1986. Monument.
Palmer Headstone About 37m North of the West Tower of the Church of St Nicholas
- WRENN ID
- ancient-foundation-frost
- Grade
- II*
- Local Planning Authority
- Torridge
- Constituency
- Torridge and Tavistock MP: Sir Geoffrey Cox (Con)
- Country
- England
- Date first listed
- 21 January 1986
- Type
- Monument
- Address
- Palmer Headstone About 37m North of the West Tower of the Church of St Nicholas, Broadwoodwidger
- OS grid reference
- SX 411 892
- Coordinates
- 50.68077, -4.25035
- Source
- Historic England listing
Description
The Palmer headstone, located about 37 meters north of the west tower of the Church of St Nicholas, is a Grade II* listed headstone from the late 18th century. It is engraved by William Ambrose of Stowford and commemorates Thomas Palmer, who died in 1789. The headstone is made of slate and features a segmental arch at the top.
The carving is detailed and depicts three scenes. In the center, death is represented as a skeleton holding an arrow, drawing aside the bed curtain of the dying man, with the phrase "welcome death" inscribed on a scroll from the skeleton's mouth. Above this scene, a clock is carved, accompanied by the verse: "Let every youth prepared be/least death should strike so young as me."
On either side of the central scene, angels are shown consoling Thomas Palmer's parents. The right-hand scene features a kneeling father with a scroll that reads "Oh my son," while the angel's scroll states, "grieve not for it is the Lords doing." Below the main inscription, there is a verse that includes: "Just in my youthful blooming age/God took me from this earthly stage/It was by a putrid Fever sore/Not long when seiz'd before I was no more."
This headstone is a particularly attractive example of personalized memorial craftsmanship, showcasing rustic artistry.
Local climate
Palmer Headstone About 37m North of the West Tower of the Church of St Nicholas sits in a wetter-than-average part of the UK, with an average of 1,050 mm of rain a year. This makes it wetter than 84% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 80% of listed buildings.
It experiences an average of 23 freeze-thaw cycles a year, fewer than 76% of listed buildings. Of these, 10 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.
Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.
More on this building
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- No EPC on record for this property
- No sale records on file
- No related consent applications matched
- Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
- Flood risk assessment
- Radon risk assessment
- Weather exposure and heating demand — rain and frost month by month and year by year, wind direction, solar and humidity
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Similar buildings
The closest matches to this building from all 493,000 UK listed buildings, by architecture, period and materials.
- 1 Palmer Tomb 18 Metres West of Church of St Nicholas
- 2 Edward Palmer Monument in the Churchyard of the Church of St Michael Circa 4 Metres South of Nave
- 3 Palmer Chest Tomb About 9 Metres South of the Church of St Mary
- 4 Palmer Headstone Approximately 4 Metres South of Church of St Petrock
- 5 Palmer Chest Tomb About 10 Metres South East of the Tower of the Church of St Mary
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Nearby listed buildings
- Cock Headstone About 11m North of the Chancel of the Church of St Nicholas
- Walter Headstone About 15m North East of the North East Corner of the Chancel of the Church of St Nicholas
- Squire Memorial About 13m North East of the North East Corner of the Chancel of the Church of St Nicholas
- Church of St Nicholas
- Down Memorial About 28m North East of the North East Corner of the Chancel of the Church of St Nicholas
- Bickle Headstone About 19m East of the Chancel of the Church of St Nicholas
- Cross About 8m South of the Porch of the Church of St Nicholas
- Kerslake Headstone About 20m South East of the Chancel of the Church of St Nicholas
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