St Mary's Church, Clophill facts for kids
The present St Mary's Church is in the middle of the small village of Clophill, between Bedford and Luton in England. This new church was built in 1848. It took the place of the old church because church leaders decided it was time for a change in 1850.
The old church building, officially called The Church of St Mary The Virgin, is on the edge of the village. People often call it Old St Mary's. It's about 650 years old and sits on top of the Greensand Ridge, giving great views of the area. Its graveyard is a lovely spot for wild flowers and animals. After the new church opened, the old building was used as a chapel for funerals. But by the 1950s, it had become a ruin.
The Church of England no longer looks after the Old Parish Church. It's now the responsibility of Central Bedfordshire Council. In 2010, local people who cared about the old church pushed for it to be fixed up. The council planned to restore it and use it as a simple shelter for walkers on a local trail. However, this plan was too expensive. So, in 2012, a new project started. This project aimed to make the ruin safe and build a viewing platform on top of the tower. There are also plans for a heritage centre next to the church.
The Old Church of St Mary
Quick facts for kids The Church of St Mary The Virgin |
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The original church, which became a ruin in the 1950s
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| Former names | The Old Parish Church |
| Alternative names | St Mary's Church |
| General information | |
| Status | No longer used |
| Type | Ruined church |
| Town or city | Clophill |
| Country | England |
| Coordinates | 52°02′14″N 0°24′34″W / 52.03733°N 0.40956°W |
| Construction started | c. 1350 |
| Owner | Central Bedfordshire Council |
The ruined church at the edge of Clophill is a very important historic building. It was probably built around 1350. It was made in a style called Perpendicular, mostly from rough ironstone with carved stone details.
In the early 1800s, some changes were made to the church. A new gallery was added in 1814, and the east end of the chancel (the part of the church near the altar) was rebuilt in 1819. By the 1820s, the church wasn't big enough for everyone. Plans to make it bigger didn't happen. The church's leader became ill and passed away in 1843. The new leader wanted to move the church to the village centre instead.
So, a new church was built between 1848 and 1849. The old church was then used as a chapel for the graveyard, which was still in use. The churchyard had a strange reputation for being a place where people sometimes dug up old bones from graves.
By 1854, only the main part of the church (the nave) and the tower were left. The chancel and galleries had been removed. Some items, like the lych gate (a covered gate to a churchyard) and two of the bells, were moved to the new church. In 1898, a guide called Kelly's Directory said the old church had interesting memorial tablets and an old oak roof. It also mentioned that church records dated back to 1568.
Repairs were done in 1901. However, after the lead was stolen from the roof in 1956, the building quickly became a ruin.
Plans for the Old Church
Central Bedfordshire Council took over the old church in 1977. Even under council ownership, the site suffered from damage and illegal dumping. In 2010, local people started a movement to give the church a new purpose. There was an idea to turn it into a bothy, which is a simple shelter for walkers on the Bedfordshire Greensand Ridge trail. But this plan was too costly for the council.
Instead, in 2012, English Heritage and Heritage at Risk agreed to help pay for restoration work. This work has now been completed. It included making the ruin safe and putting in a gravel path inside the church. They also fixed a spiral staircase and added a viewing platform. This allows visitors to climb to the top of the tower and enjoy the view. Tower tours happen daily, but it's a good idea to call ahead as volunteers run them. Future plans include building a heritage centre next to the church.
The New St Mary's Church
The new St Mary's Church, which is the current parish church, was built in the village centre between 1848 and 1849. The lych gate and two of the church bells were moved from the old church to the new one. One bell was made in 1623, and the other in 1774. A third bell was left behind in the old building. The church officially moved to the new building in September 1850.
The architect for the new church was Thomas Smith. The church was built from brown sandstone with details made of Portland stone. The main part of the church (the nave) was about 18 metres long and 7.7 metres wide. The aisle was about 3.8 metres wide. It had a gallery at the west end and open pews that could seat 530 people. The building cost about £2,300, which was a lot of money back then.
In May 1957, another bell was moved from the old church to the new one. This happened after the lead was stolen from the old church's roof the year before. A special cross-beam from the old roof, which had a beautiful vine pattern, was moved to a new chapel in the new building. This chapel was opened in 1958. Plans for this new chapel included moving the organ and adding a new altar and other church furniture. The altar rail in the new chapel was made from new oak and an 18th-century staircase from the old church.
A few years later, in 1964, a problem called dry rot was found in the roof of the new church. Architects made plans to remove the old roof and replace it with the steep roof you see today.
In 1898, Kelly's Directory noted that the church was built with money from public donations. It also said it was "approached by a noble avenue of elms," meaning it had a grand entrance lined with trees.
Today, St Mary's Church is part of a group of churches in Campton, Clophill, and Haynes.
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