St Michael and All Angels Kerry

I have to prologise because I did not go anywhere this week for a couple of reasons but I'm still not happy about going out places  but in a couple of weeks they are allowing  places of worship to open again so I will endeavour to venture out then but I do have a couple of blogs I can write before hand.

This is a place I forgot I visited back in 2012. I did have a specific purpose which was to visit the grave of an Airman Killed in a crash near Wallingford back in 1944. It's a story I had heard about and after seeing the cairn in memory to them at the junction of Andrew and Wilding roads in Wallingford I thought it would be good to find theirs graves sometime. I knew one of them was buried at Brookwood Cemetery and found out Sgt Andrews was buried at Kerry in Wales. After finding out where the place was my wife & I went out for a drive one day when we were on holiday.

St Michael & All Angeles looked like a typical church you would find in Wales

In the square near the church you can see the village War memorial

There were two men from the village who are named on the Memorial Sgt F/E J F Anders RAF is the person who dies near Wallingford and was buried at his local church

Now I did not take any photos of the church apart from the weather vane on the porch. I think the fact the church was locked and I had left my wife with the dogs was the reason

I did walk around the back looking for his grave and came across this Commonwealth War grave of Private Price Charles Evans in the overgrown grass. It was the first slate headstone I had seen

I realised there was a cemetery nearby so went there to look for the grave I was after

The cemetery held the more recent burials

I soon found the Grave of Sgt Andrews

I felt I had put closure to my quest in finding the two RAF heroes. When you hear the words "Greater Love has no man than he lays down his life for his friends" it rings true.

You can read more of what I found out about  Flying Officer J A Wildingford & Sargent J F Andrew in this link.

Take Care and have a wonderful weekend

St Mary Magdalene Shippon

This was the first church I have visited in three months and I was not expecting it to be open but then I needed to phone a church warden to arrange this and as things are at the moment I felt I would be asking a little much. Not much I can find on the church other than "St Mary Magdalene was built in 1855 to a design of Gilbert Scott." The entry door in the porch had a notice telling people it would be open for Prayer from 12am-1pm for personal prayer as as it was around 10am I did not think I should hang around to go inside so if you would like to see the interior then click this link that takes you to a fellow Church Crawlers Web Site Oxfordshire Churches.

From over the boundary wall at the roadside you can see the church is built in the mid 1800's being typical of that time

The village War Memorial is the first thing you pass after coming through the gate.

From over in the North East side of the churchyard gives a good view

There was not a lot of room to get a shot of the east

so I took another useing the wide angle lens as well

Going around the South side to the West end

Finally back around the South side

If you look over to the left as you come in the gate you see an area that seems to be made into a patio where a tree once stood

to the right a bit you can see over to the east end of the churchyard

Where you cannot miss these two huge tomb chests which are unusual in their design, not something I have seen before.

Carry on past and you come to the South side 

Where there are some  graves near the boundary wall, the building you see is the church hall

Above an unusual cross now fallen over and left safe.


Right the churchyard on the South side looking West

Where you can see a few family tombs and plots

Along to the West end of the churchyard

Where you go around to the North side.
Right a last look along the South side of the Churchyard

 and a final look at the two chest tombs

Just as I was going back I noticed the Commonwealth War Grave of  Private F.R.Bosbury who dies ages 18, it was almost hidden under the Yew tree but is remembered. RIP
Till Next time stay safe and have a great weekend

St Peter Wootton

We are gradually coming out of lock down and on Monday the 15th Churches will be open for private mediation. I am hoping to get out and visit some again and bring you new churches to see so I will start by showing you one of the last churches I visited before the crisis started. Some history on the church off Wikipedia.
"The Church of England parish church of Saint Peter was built in the 14th century, from which time the Decorated Gothic east window of the chancel survives. In the 15th century the nave was rebuilt with Perpendicular Gothic windows. The south door and porch are 16th century and the chancel arch may have been rebuilt in the 18th century.
Until the 19th century Wootton was part of the parish of Cumnor. The first vicar of Wootton was appointed in 1885. Wootton was united in a single benefice with St. Helen's, Dry Sandford in 2000. but once again became a single parish benefice in the Abingdon Deanery in 2018.
The sculptor Oscar Nemon (1906–85) and his son Falcon Stuart (1941–2002) are buried in St Peter's churchyard".

After the disappointment of the visit to St Helen Dry Sandford where I found the church locked because of a safety concern I was hopeful of the next one at St Mary Wootton.

The church I admit did look older with the churchyard having some old headstone showing I spotted what looked like the base of a preaching cross near the church

Looking from the South told me it dated back quite a bit with the window frames I could see

Another view of the church from across the churchyard with a view of the weathervane on top of the bellcote

The West end was rendered but retained the old window frames

From there I went around the North side and the extension on the side

This looked to now be the vestry

The East end of the chancel

From here you could see along the path to the porch

The entrance door in the porch was open so I went in for a look

I must admit I was surprised to see a the Lay Minister and a lady sat on a bench at the back of the church having a discussion. I then found out the church was normally locked but as they were there it was OK for me to take some photos.
The normal photos I take looking down the nave to the chancel arch

Looking along it you could see some superb chandeliers hanging from the roof and some one kept them well polished

The chancel arch looked original

You walked past this pulpit which was set on a stem. Right we look though the chancel

The altar with the East window behind

The altar was set off by the screen behind which was quite stunning to look at

On the window sill of the South wall of the chancel a small lectern and another beautiful stained glass window

The smaller window in the south wall does not have stained glass but a beautiful stained glass panel had been places in the opening

The altar is set off by a simple wooden cross

Commemoration plaque dedicated to the men of the RAF  who trained at the Bomber Command camp at Youlbury, something I never knew about when I went there with the Souts in the 1960's

The roof space in the chancel which is decorated

From the Chancel arch looking down the nave

The top of the font has this beautiful little candle holder

A last look at the church from by the entrance a prayer tree stands beside it

In the porch on the way out I noticed these old floor tiles which decorate the West wall

The churchyard path with the older graves on the left

Over in the South West corner of the churchyard

Looking East

And over to the North West

An old cross in a  family plot has succumb to a covering of ivy

More of family grave snow lost in undergrowth

Lichen covers this old headstone with ivy grows on another grave

The churchyard is deceiving because it expands with an extension

on the North side of the church

The grave of the poet Elizabeth Daryush

 

A covered wooden cross in the froground

A memorial that took my eye along with the headstone of Falcon Nemon Stuart 

The sculpture belgons to his Father  Oscar Nemon

The headstones at the North side are the more modern burials

A couple of the more interesting crosses you can see

The Commonwealth War Grave of Corporal L.R.Hoborough

Two more headstones with ties to the armed forces

Couple of the older headstones showing their age

A last look along the churchyard by the church as I walk along the path

I will leave you with this view of the village War Memorial which stands proud in front of the church.
My thanks to the Lay Minister for allowing me to get my photos of the church.

Till Next time stay safe and have a wonderful weekend