Church Heritage Record 601335

3-bay nave and 2-bay chancel, west tower, north porch and north-east organ chamber.

Nave 14m (43ft) x 6.6m (20ft).

The site and its immediate surrounding area have been exploited and inhabited since at least the Roman period.  The area has been the subject of intensive archaeological fieldwork and research by the North Somerset Levels Project (University of Exeter).  This work has revealed that the area of the Dolmoors directly to the east and south of Puxton was exploited by Early Roman salt-panners, though this area seems to have subsequently flooded and been abandoned by the end of the Roman period. 

Several of the Puxton and Hewish farmhouses have been shown to be at least 17th-century in origin, and to overlie earlier buildings of the medieval period, while the drainage and enclosure of the surrounding fields for agriculture have been shown to date back to the 10th century.  Puxton is mentioned in Domesday Book as part of the manor of Banwell, which had belonged to King Harold before the Conquest. There are specific references to a chapel on the site as early as 1147.

The church stands on a slight mound, elevated about 0.5m above the surrounding area and on the northern edge of a pronounced earthwork known as Church Field. The results of the archaeological excavations here, which have produced a settlement sequence dated from the 10th-13th century, and the presence of Saxo-Norman fonts in the church (see below) suggests there has been a church on this site since the 10th century. The church and churchyard are therefore of considerable archaeological significance.

The architectural details now visible attest a programme of work in the late 14th and early 15th century.  The two-cell church was further enlarged at this time by the addition of the west tower, which almost immediately began to subside south-westwards into the marshy ground underneath. Even though its height was then restricted the tower remains a good metre out of true. 

The church may have been restored during the reign of Mary I, in 1557, when the north porch was added, and the roof renewed.  The apparent erection of a stone screen, in place of the rood screen probably followed soon after in the reign of Elizabeth. 

There were few subsequent alterations to the fabric.  Much of the furniture is of the 17th century, while the bell-frame and tower roof are of the late 18th century, repaired in the early 19th.  Victorian restoration appears to have been limited to roof repairs, limited and sensitive rebuilding of the chancel (the windows here are still medieval) and the addition of the small organ chamber.  Even the few 20th-century contributions, for example the war memorials, are of good quality and sensitive to the building. 

The church suffered some blast damage from a German bomb during World War II.  The over-zealous re-pointing, especially around the windows, was probably part of the repairs after this event, as it was bemoaned by F C Eeles in his report of 1943 for the Council regarding the bomb damage.

The building is dominated visually by the (stylistically, at least) Perpendicular tower, although this broad leaning stump does not lend much vertical emphasis, drawing the eye as much sideways as up.  The tower is of two stages defined only by plain string-courses, topped by a parapet pierced with quatrefoils.  The tip of the pyramidal roof is visible from a distance, topped by a brass weathercock.

The tower has diagonal buttresses with a single shallow weathering, and a semi-octagonal stair tower which only slightly protrudes above the parapet.  The belfry stage has louvred pointed two-light windows in each face, with trefoil cusped heads below a quatrefoil, and hood-moulds above with floriate stops.  There is a large two-light in the same style in the lower stage lighting the ringing chamber.  Below this is a doorway with a pointed head and continuous mouldings.

Externally the main body of the church is also wholly Perpendicular in style, though the broad dimensions and thick walls of the nave indicate an early foundation date.  From the south the Saxo-Norman nave (originally nave and chancel within a single cell?), 13th- or 14th-century chancel and 15th-century tower can be appreciated as the basic components of the building.

The south doorway has plain chamfered jambs and a relatively narrow pointed head, and may be of the 13th century or early 14th century.  The barred oak door appears to be of the 17th century (in need of conservation).

The north and south walls of the nave and the chancel south wall each have two windows, which are of differing shapes and sizes but are basically all of the late 14th- early 15th century.  With the exception of the south-eastern nave window (see below), these are all two-lights.  These have pointed trefoil-cusped heads within square frames, the north-west window also has shutter rebates and a bolt socket.  These windows are probably late 14th century. The similar two-light in the south wall of the organ chamber is a 19th century addition; an illustration of 1804 shows a door here.

The western window of the south wall and the east window of the chancel south wall have moulded labels with square stops, and may be 16th century.  The north-eastern nave window is a pointed two-light of the same style as the tower windows.  The south-eastern nave window and the large east window are three-lights with depressed four-centred heads and alternating mullion tracery, and are probably late 14th century, perhaps of c1380. 

The nave and lower chancel roofs have stone copings and stone gable cross finials.  There is evidence that the nave was re-roofed in the 16th century, the chancel in the late 19th century (see below).  There are irregularly spaced buttresses with two weatherings, three on the north wall of the nave and one on the south adjacent to the tower.

The north porch also has a shallowly pitched roof, with stone copings and a ball finial.  The entrance has continuous mouldings around a very slightly pointed four-centred head (the internal doorway has a similar profile), details which match the date of 1557 given on a plaque above the entrance.  This plaque also bears a coat of arms, thought to be those of the De Sancto Laudo (St Loe) family.  The battened inner door is of oak, and may well be 18th century.

The interior is very light as it has been white-washed throughout, with the exception of the doorways and windows, where the cogged surrounds are visible with rather obvious dark grey hard cement pointing of recent date.  Beginning at the west end, the pointed tower arch mirrors the west entrance in having continuous mouldings.  There are marks cut into the jambs, which relate to the checking of chainlengths for the “doling out” of the Dolmoors (Gardner 1985), which was carried out up to the enclosures of the early 19th century. 

The arch is screened off with a (late 18th-century?) dark stained oak panelled screen with a rectangular double door in the middle, with transparent plastic sheeting above.  The tower arch is flanked by four black round-headed Commandment Boards with gold lettering, probably late 18th century in date. 

Behind this the tower space is cluttered with unused furniture and various bric a brac.  The ceiling above incorporates beams which may be of the 18th century, or possibly earlier; there are sockets in the walls below this, possibly evidence of an earlier ceiling/ belfry floor.  A narrow pointed doorway and rickety oak door (17th or 18th century) give access to the very worn newel staircase.  The (18th century?) bell-frame is still mostly intact, but the bells have been removed, with one exception which is now hung from two rusty iron girders.  The pyramidal timber roof itself is of interest, especially the lead covering.  This is embossed with the initials I.B, CW, T&P and the date 1773 on the south face, while it also has a series of engraved shoe soles and the dates 1806-1809, obviously commemorating repair works in that period.

Moving on to the nave interior, the most obvious problem the building is facing is immediately apparent.  The 16th-century roof structure, which is only visible from the height of the tie-beams beneath the ceiling, is presently supported by scaffolding on the advice of English Heritage architects.  Problems first became evident in 1993, when one of the joints between the tie-beams and the trusses cracked.  More subsidence has since become evident, leading to the closure of the church for worship.

Despite the scaffolding, the attention is held by the remarkable floor (of which more below) and furniture resting on it.  The north side of the nave and the western half of the south side is taken up by 3 sets of 5 very plain oak benches of plank construction with chamfered square ends. The rear example of the north-east set has a panelled back and brattished rail, and bears a coat of arms and crude fleur-de-lys finials. 

These pews are said locally to be of the 14th century, but seem more likely to be later, perhaps mid-late 16th century, quite possibly contemporary with the construction of the porch.  They show signs of beetle infestation which is not thought to be active. One damaged example kept under the tower has been replaced by a modern bench.

The south side of the nave is occupied by 5 fine oak box pews, probably of the early 18th century.   These are high-sided and have panelled doors and their original iron fittings.  A miniature (children’s) box pew is situated in the north-west corner.  At the west end of the nave between these stands the font, or fonts. The clearly Norman tub font stands on what appears to be an inverted earlier font (see below), which is set into a stone slab in the floor.

The reading desk and pulpit now face each other from respectively the south-east and north-east corners of the nave, flanking the chancel arch.  These are both Jacobean and plainly of a piece; indeed they were probably once part of a two-decker arrangement (the sounding board has apparently been lost).  A harmonium sits rather incongruously in front of the north side of the chancel screen, blocking the view of a tablet fixed into the screen here (see monuments below).  There is a rectangular Commandment Board mounted on the wall above this.

The chancel screen itself is of stone and is plainly cut into the chancel arch.  The latter has continuous mouldings and a four-centred pointed head and is probably 14th century in date.  The screen survives to waist height, with a moulded brattished cornice and inset moulded terminals flanking the narrow central gap.  It would appear to be late 16th century (Elizabethan) in date.  The screen probably replaced the rood screen; the sawn off remnants of the beams can be seen in the side walls, and the blocked doorway to the rood stair is plainly visible in the south wall above this.  There is a small pointed doorway underneath this, blocked by the reading desk.

One step leads up to the chancel, and one further step to the sanctuary.  The altar rails here are again Jacobean.  There are ledger slabs set into the floor as in the nave.  There is a very fine light oak chest in the south-east corner on top of one of these, with beautifully carved panels, probably also of the early 17th century.  The atmosphere of the chancel is strongly Victorian however, with exposed ashlar facing in the walls of the tiny organ chamber and the pitched-pine waggon roof with its single tie-beam between the bays. 

The floors of the nave and chancel are of irregular stone flags into which several ledger stones are set.  Some of these are of considerable interest. A full record should be made of them since it was not possible to do so during the inspection.  A summary of what could be discerned after rearranging as much as possible of this and the rather worn red carpeting in the church is given below