Church of St Leonard, South Cockerington

I have been meaning to visit the Church of St. Leonard, South Cockerington, Lincolnshire for a while and wanting to try out the Canon M5 mirror-less camera gave me the incentive. I took the camera fitted with a Canon EFS 17-85mm zoom lens and a Speedlight flash gun to use inside. As the church is at the end of a long, narrow, winding lane I was very relieved at not meeting any traffic coming in the opposite direction.

car video clip


There was just enough room to park one car off the lane by the entrance to the church.

First view of the early 14thC, late 15thC and 19thC restored church



The only gargoyles I noticed were near the top of the tower



Inside the North entrance porch with its plank door

    

Once inside we see the font



The view looking to the East where the 15thC screen can be seen



Restored in the 19thC



To the right of the screen is a large alabaster monument to Sir Adrian Scrope who died in 1623.
The figure rests on a tomb chest of white and pink streaked marble on which are panels depicting two kneeling daughters and six sons







Taking a peek through the screen the choir stalls and altar can be seen



In the walls either side of the altar are small niches



Returning to the West end of the church we see the small chamber organ.



This has memories and a small connection with my family.
My father played the organ at several of the local churches. Many years ago the S. Cockerington parish decided they would like an organ, the church not having one at that time. This one was in a church which had dropped out of use and permission was given to move it to St. Leonards. My father and I were asked for advice on how to dismantle and move it safely so one weekend we went along and helped. The firm advice given was in the handling of the pipes. Many have a high lead content which gives them the traditional sound. Consequently the metal is very soft and easily damaged. A group of us carefully dismantled the organ, labelling all the pipes and where they fitted, transported it and re-assembled it in its new home. After that a professional organ tuner was engaged to finish the job of retuning it. He complimented us on the care we had taken when moving the organ.

By the way, all the windows are fitted with plain clear glass so no stained glass to photograph this time.

Back outside to have a look round.
The West entrance at the bottom of the tower



A view of the South side



A couple of grave stones



The oldest one I spotted



The inscription reads:
"Here lies the body of George and Eliz
Son and daughter of George and Rebecca Dunham
Both departed July the 7th 1759
He in the 19 she in 17 year of their ages
They're pluck'd like roses not full blown
(the next line is well worn or scratched out)
(It appears to read 'As you a bove may see')
To heavn I hope they both are gone
To reign eternally"

A view from the far end of the spacious graveyard



The only other visitors I saw

  

About ten common darter dragonflies



Then the drive back home along that same narrow, winding lane.

All photos were taken in RAW, batch converted to virtually lossless jpgs with Preview. Some were cropped or tweaked slightly with Affinity Photo on a Macbook. I found the M5 fairly difficult to hold with the extra weight of a zoom lens and Speedlight. Also I found it too easy to accidentally press the video button when holding the camera in portrait mode. Otherwise I am pleased with the results. It was very useful at times to tap the touch screen to choose where I wanted it to focus.

St. James's Church, Louth

It is all but impossible to take in a complete view of the church as it is surrounded by other buildings The only way to get an overall impression of its size and the height of the tower and steeple is from a model which can be seen inside the church:



As I approached the church from the shopping area of the town the great East window could be seen:



Viewed from inside:



I had only set out to visit the market but on impulse I decided to have a quick look round the parish church as well.  I hoped the cafe would be open as I was looking forward to a sit down with a cup of tea. Fortunately it was so I ordered a pot of tea and a toasted teacake to enjoy in pleasant surroundings:



While I sat looking around to my great pleasure the organist decided to have a practice session. I started up a video just to capture the sound. I only managed a short recording before I was interrupted:



The camera wasn't able to capture the rich bass sounds which could be felt as well as heard from the organ positioned at the opposite end of the church.  I said I was interrupted, though in a pleasant way. A lady with her daughter and two grand-daughters asked if they could join me as this was the only table with enough room for us all. We had a long chat while I enjoyed my toasted teacake. They were hoping to climb the tower to take in the fantastic views but it was locked. I think, for safety reasons, someone has to make a note of how many people go up and make sure they all get back down safely. Hopefully someone would be available to allow them access before they left.

The cafe is situated under the tower and from where I was sitting I could see one of the many stained glass windows:



Looking straight up I could see the sunburst decoration on the roof of the tower over 85 feet above my head:



The sides of the Nave are full of stained glass windows. As far as I can work out they were all installed from the mid 1800's to early 1900's. All told there are some 33 windows with stained glass.







The Chancel with the high altar and choir stalls:



An old font positioned near the organ loft:



The 19th Century font made from Staffordshire alabaster:

    

     

Four of the panels show biblical scenes:
The Garden of Eden, Christ's Baptism and the Crucifixion seen here:



The fourth shows Noah's Ark.

A view of the roof of the Nave:



There is much more detail to be seen in and around the building which I will have to explore on a future visit as it was time to think of meandering back to the car. Next time I will take another camera and a flash gun.

What a Whopper

Yesterday I drove down to a mower centre on the coast to have a look at some ride on mowers. The route along the back country lanes takes me through the village of South Somercotes.  Passing through the village I always have a quick glance at the village church. Very noticeable, even from a distance, is the size of the spire. I've been promising myself for years to stop and take a closer look but it is positioned near a narrow, dangerous Z bend in the road. This time, on the way back home, I found a nearby lane where it was safe to park.



The following photos were taken with my Nikon Coolpix S9050.

The tower and spire probably date back to the early 15th Century

 

 

The church is known as "The Queen of the Marsh".
Local legend suggests the spire was built so tall to act as a beacon for sailors.
The parish register dates back to 1558.

Once in through the North door



the 15th Century font can be seen. It is carved with the instruments of the Passion.



including two flails, two lances and four nails



The interior of the church is roomy and light.



The pulpit







Moving on through the chancel screen

 

one can see the altar table



and a harmonium. (I used to have one like that many years ago)



On a table there are two old bibles.
I had a close look at one of them



It contains many full colour illustrations. This is the title page.





Looking back towards the base of the tower



The belfry hold three bells, two dated 1423 and the other was cast in the 14th Century.

Outside -looking at the tower and spire from the South side



The South entrance porch



The walls of the church are a mixture of limestone, sandstone and greensand with some repairs patched with brick. The nave and chancel are roofed with Welsh slates and the aisles with lead.

Finally, a fascinating niche in the base of the tower



Information on the history of the church was gleaned from a small booklet produced by The Churches Conservation Trust.