The St. Andrew's Church Restoration Project
This
page needs updating, which will be done soon. The project has taken on a new
momentum, and is now very exciting. I'll let you know the latest news
soon. Meanwhile if you wish to visit the actual site, contact Russell Wright
(in Chantry Lane) or Kate Peglar (01904-702478). This posted 8/9/2000.
A church has stood here at the end of Chantry Lane, alongside the river and
Bishopthorpe Palace, for nigh on a thousand years.
So it is fitting that a project for the new millennium should be dedicated to saving and restoring the old church site, abandoned a hundred years ago in favour of the new church site opposite the Palace gatehouse.
A church of some sort dedicated to St. Andrew was certainly built here by
the river in the 1220's, and only replaced by a second (or third?) in the
mid 1760's. This church was a rare example of what is called 'Bishopthorpe
Gothic' design. At the same time the new gate-house and frontage to the
Palace were built, and the three formed a composition, which is now difficult
to see because of all the trees. It seems the surviving front, or west,
wall was added to the church in 1842.
Of that church, only the ruin of this west wall remains, together with an outline of the church itself. By the 1890's erosion by the river, and a lack of space, forced the village to rent part of a field across the road to extend the graveyard. The first grave went to Sarah Forth, who died aged 36 in 1892. But the river was fast eroding the church's foundations as well - the east end was about to fall into the river. The building of the new St Andrew's began in 1898. The last service in the old church was held in July 1899, and the first in the new church on Tuesday July 25th 1899. However, 'SonRise' services are still on the old site every Easter Sunday at dawn.
The restoration project, funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund and already underway, will make the ruin safe and prevent further deterioration. It is restoring the front wall, some of the crenellations and finials at the top and most of the lovely tracery from the West Window (which has been hidden away in storage for years). The project is also creating new natural habitats - meadow lands and trees - around the ruin, and where possible restoring the gravestones, which had been moved aside, to their rightful places. A new river defence system and embankment are being constructed, and with them a new walk-way from Chantry Lane around the site and along to Ferry Lane and the boatyard. This is major civil engineering, but it will open a new vista onto our lovely but ironically destructive river.
If you have never been here, it is a wonderful, even a thrilling spot. A small space in which to marvel, wander, and enjoy a quietly magical atmosphere.
Soon there will be a site map, more pictures and a fuller
explanation of what's happening.
This page was written by the Bish WebMonkeys, on scant evidence, 29/7/1999. It is believed to be true. Updated 8/9/2000.
