Church Of All Saints

Church of All Saints, Appleton-le-Street with Easthorpe

A church of mixed dates, with an 11th-century tower, early 13th-century chancel (shortened in the 15th century), late 13th-century north aisle, and south aisle of around 1300. A 19th-century south porch was added later. The building is constructed of squared calcareous sandstone and rubble with some rebuilding in sandstone, with slate roofs and Roman tile to the porch.

The plan comprises a west tower with north porch, a 2-bay aisled nave, and a chancel. The tower rises in three stages. The original west doorway is now blocked by a round-arched light with stopped hoodmould. A gabled porch on the north side contains a late 12th-century doorway of 2 chamfered orders, the inner on chamfer-stopped responds and the outer on attached shafts with water-leaf capital to the east and crocket capital to the west. The hoodmould is finished with leaf-stops. Above the porch is a trefoil-headed niche containing the remains of a sculpted Virgin and Child. Blocked rectangular openings are visible to the south side. Paired round-arched bell-openings with mid-wall shafts and chamfered imposts occupy the second stage; the third stage has similar, smaller openings with chevron-moulded shafts. Raised bands run across the second and third stages, and a cavetto-moulded eaves cornice with water spouts finishes the tower, which is topped by a low pyramidal roof.

The south aisle features dwarf buttresses at each end and to the centre. Two restored, square-arched windows of 3 lights have trefoil heads to the west and shouldered heads to the east. An east wall window is pointed, with 3 trefoil-headed lights and intersecting tracery, finished with a head-stopped hoodmould. A lancet occupies the west wall. The north aisle has a massive offset buttress to the centre, with a low blocked opening to the west. Windows of 2 pointed foiled lights with leaf-stopped hoodmoulds flank the buttress. The east wall window is a lancet in a chamfered opening. A low parapet runs along the nave roof.

The chancel's south side has 2 lancets in quoined, chamfered surrounds. A pointed hoodmould to the west sits beneath a 19th-century memorial tablet to members of the Hebden family. A dwarf buttress stands to the east. The north side contains a plank door with timber lintel and a pilaster buttress to the east. The east window is square-arched, with 3 cinquefoil lights.

Interior features include a semicircular tower arch on chamfered responds with imposts moulded on the lower edges. The north arcade has double-chamfered pointed arches on a cylindrical pier and keel-moulded responds with chamfers and leaf-stops. The south arcade has double-chamfered pointed arches with hoodmoulds, on an octagonal pier and half-octagonal responds; the eastern respond has a headstop. A pointed, double-chamfered chancel arch on triple responds (the centre one filleted) carries a hoodmould with a headstop to the north.

In the sanctuary north wall is a round-headed aumbry; to the south, part of a rounded piscina arch with a rough, projecting bowl beneath. Another piscina with a cusped pointed head stands in the south aisle. A 12th-century tub font has a 17th-century tall octagonal cover. An altar table and rails date to 1636-37.

Two effigies of ladies of the Bolton family, Lords of Appleton in the 14th century, lie in the sanctuary. Two wall tablets on the chancel north wall by W Stead of York commemorate Reverend Luke Thompson (died 1799) and his wife, Mary (died 1794).