Church Of St Martin

The Church of St Martin is a Grade II* listed building located in Martindale. It dates from the late 16th century and is built on medieval foundations, with a porch added around 1714 and a roof from the 1880s. The church is constructed from stone rubble and features a slate roof. It consists of a single-vessel nave, chancel, and a west lobby with vestries.

The north and south elevations have irregular fenestration, with four windows on each side. These windows have fixed chamfered wooden frames, transoms, and leaded glazing secured to two intermediate bars. The north side has a two-light window, the east end has a three-light window, and the west end features a two-light window. The west end includes a gabled porch with a 19th-century door that has closeable cusped ventilation slots, along with a gabled bell cote. The north elevation has a studded vestry door at the west end and a stone dated 1714 set into the window jamb.

Inside, the church has 19th-century king post trusses and 17th-century wainscotting with fielded panels, along with longitudinal pews believed to be adapted from box pews. The 17th-century pulpit at the west end features decorative panels and an inscription reading "I & AD 1634" on an applied panel. The lobby panelling is also from the 17th century, with ovolo moulded members and cresting. The paired doors leading into the church from the lobby, dating to the 19th century, also have cusped ventilation slots. The font at the east end of the church has broach stops to its chamfers and a small recess on top, which may have been a Roman altar or medieval holy water stoup, with grooves on one face said to be from arrow sharpening. This church is a notable example of Lakeland vernacular architecture.