Stoke Sub Hamdon United Reformed Church

The Stoke Sub Hamdon United Reformed Church was built in 1866, designed by Robert C. Bennett of Weymouth. Constructed in the 13th and 14th century Gothic style, it draws inspiration from Anglican parish churches. The building is primarily of ham stone, with squared and boasted facing, ashlar dressings, and a steeply pitched Welsh slate roof with an ornamental clay tiled ridge and gable finials.

The main gable elevation to the street features a low, projecting corner tower with a spirelet. A central porch is set beneath a cinquefoil cusped archway, flanked by gabled frontispieces, finials, and double buttresses. Above the porch is a narrow, seven-light Geometric-style traceried window with thin members, an arched label, a cusped triangular gable vent, and a crocketted finial. The tower’s three stages incorporate a plinth, cill course, and strings, with flying buttresses spanning the deep basement area. The lowest stage has small lancets, and the south face has a pointed arched doorway. The second stage contains two-light traceried pointed arched windows with clock faces above. Above this are stepped offsets leading to the octagonal base of the spirelet, which is braced by further flying buttresses.

The south elevation has five bays of plain lancet windows, again set against flying buttresses above the basement, where a single cusped lancet window is present in each bay. The north elevation mirrors this arrangement. A lower, two-story, four-bay extension is attached to the west, featuring a lean-to on the south side, quatrefoil upper windows, cusped lancets, and a pointed-arched doorway in the second bay. Buttresses define each bay, and a small bell turret, complete with a bell, sits atop the west gable. Elaborate ornamental cast iron railings are positioned between the flying buttresses, with three-leaf tops to the standards and Gothic-arched panels.

Inside, the church follows a typical arrangement with a gallery at the east end and a large ‘chancel’ arch at the west, accommodating an organ and choir. Some pews have been removed to create more space. An undercroft houses rooms, currently used as a playschool and other small rooms to the west. The church likely replaced earlier Presbyterian meetings begun around 1715 and a nearby ‘barn chapel’, and was constructed at the instigation of local glover, Richard Southcombe, who stipulated that his employees should attend.