Church Heritage Record 607363

Nave with south porch and west turret. Chancel, southeast vestry. Modern lean-to structure to northeast.

There is no known archaeology directly associated with the church site, and the 1840s church the first known structure built here, to service a rapidly growing population in a hitherto sparsely populated area. However, the site lies just within the Hadrian’s Wall World Heritage Site and the Scottish border, which raises some possibility of Roman or later archaeology. There is also a World War II airfield a short distance away to the northwest and the area was the target on enemy bombing, with one bomb recorded as having fallen in the churchyard of St Paul’s.

There are no known finds associated with the site and the historical development does not present a high likelihood for archaeological potential. However, the long history of sites within wider proximity, from Hadrian’s Wall to the World War II airfield, raise the small possibility of scatter finds of various periods from Roman onwards. 

St Paul’s was built in 1844-45 as a chapel of ease for Holme Cultram Abbey, located less than four miles away to the southeast. Holme Cultram was itself established as a Cistercian monastery around 1150 and was dissolved during the reign of Henry VIII, but was established as a parish church in 1538.

St Paul’s was built at a cost of £850, with the money raised by the local population. The Incorporated Church Building Society also contributed to the cost, and the plaque declaring this remains above the south door. The church was intended to serve a growing population of this area.

The architect for the church was William Strong, and it is described in Mannix & Whelan’s Directory of Cumberland (1847) as ‘a neat Gothic edifice’. The first rector is recorded as Revd Isaac Bowman. A parsonage house was built in 1851-52 closer into Causewayhead, to the southwest of the church; the Sunday School and Mission Hall were built opposite. (All these buildings survive in other use today.)

The construction of St Paul’s was soon followed by Christ Church in Silloth, which was booming as a seaside resort, following the arrival of the railway. The church was built in in 1870-71 by Cory & Ferguson (and is today Grade II listed).

A faculty was granted for a refurbishment of St Paul’s in 1889-90, and the two-manual organ was introduced at this time. Several windows were introduced to the church in the 19th and early 20th century. The most recent addition to the glass collection is one to the memory of Dr Hugh Hutton (1911-96), a local physician and supporter of St Paul’s.

In 1892, land was granted by the Earl of Lonsdale to the south of St Paul’s. This was consecrated in 1893 and now serves as the public cemetery, following the closure of St Paul’s churchyard. St Paul’s was united with Christ Church, Silloth as one parish in 1949.

There are numerous mature trees in the churchyard but no designations. The churchyard is mowed only periodically so is hospitable to wildlife.

The church is a single phase of construction, with the exception of a lean-to structure on the north side. The style is Early English Gothic Revival, with limited architectural embellishments. Simple two cell arrangement of nave and chancel, with small vestry to the south of the chancel and the entrance through a south porch. A plinth runs around the nave, chancel and vestry.

The south porch stands at the westernmost bay of the nave, surmounted by a stone cross. The outer opening is a narrow, pointed arch with a hoodmould terminating in floral balls. The nave is of four bays, with the south elevations having paired lancet windows under simple hoodmoulds with plain label-stops, and the north elevation having single lancets to all but one bay, whilst the easternmost window is blocked. Substantial stepped buttresses dividing each bay on both north and south elevations, with diagonal buttresses at the western corners. The west elevation has three single lancets, the central taller than the two flanking, and with simple hoodmoulds with plain label-stops over each. The steeply pitched roof has a single chamber bellcote at the west end, slightly canterlevered over the gable, with dentilated base. A simple stone cross tops the east end.

The chancel is significantly lower and narrower than the nave. It, too, has a steeply pitched roof with a stone cross at the east end. A single lancet window with simple hoodmould to both the north and south elevation. The east elevation has a triple lancet, the lights divided by pilasters with round bases and capitals and the hoodmoulds terminated by ball-flowers.

Standing within the return between the chancel and nave on the south side is the vestry, a small structure with double-pitched roof orientated with the gable to the south elevation, carved and with octagonal chimney with dentilated base. A single lancet window of same style as chancel lancets on the south elevation. Pointed arched doorway to east elevation, the softwood door with Gothic tracery.

Abutting the chancel to the north is a modern, utilitarian lean-to structure with single-pitched roof. A shed-style door provides access from the north side.

The interior of the porch is plain, with a simple timber bench. The inner doorway is the same pointed arch as the outer doorway, and has double softwood timber doors with Gothic tracery.

The roof of the nave consists of exposed king post trusses. Principal trusses with curved beams spring from fluted corbels almost half-way down north and south walls. Otherwise, the nave interior is plain, with no architectural embellishment.

The chancel arch is a plain, unmoulded pointed arch. Three steps up to chancel; single step up to santuary. A single, central king post truss in the chancel springs from corbels in the same manner as the nave. The roof in the chancel, however, is plastered with only some of the timbers exposed. The three-light east window is divided by round column shafts; a hoodmould traces the tops of the lights, with an additional pointed arched hoodmould over the set, terminating in ball-flowers.

The vestry interior is plain, its roof joists exposed.