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The Churchyard
of the Parish Church of
St John the Baptist , Letton:
A Topographic
Survey
Herefordshire
Archaeology Report No. 136
Herefordshire Archaeology, September 2004
Report
prepared by Richard Lello
Summary
A topographic survey of the churchyard of the
parish church of St John the Baptist, Letton (HSM
1705) was undertaken by Herefordshire Archaeology
in partnership with the Caring for God's Acre
project of the Diocese of Hereford. The aims of
the survey were to produce an accurate plan of
the churchyard, and to investigate topographic
features and their relationship to the archaeology
and geology; of the churchyard and its environs.
A plan of the churchyard was drawn at a scale
of 1:200. The churchyard and its environs are
discussed based on field observations and archival
research. A long history of continuity and change
is recognised at Letton, dating at least -front
the 11th century.
Disclaimer
It should not be assumed that land referred to
in this document is accessible to the public.
Location plans are indicative only. NGRs are accurate
to approximately 10m. Measured dimensions are
accurate to within 1m at a scale of l:500, 0.1m
at 1:50, and 0.02m at 1:20. Figures contain material
from the Ordnance Survey. The grid in this material
is the National Grid taken from the Ordnance Survey
map with the permission of the Controller of Her
Majesty's Stationery Office. This material has
been reproduced in order to locate the site in
its environs. Contact details: Herefordshire Archaeology.
PO Box 144, Hereford, HR1 2YH Copyright Herefordshire
Council 2004
Introduction
The parish church of St John the
Baptist, Letton, is located in the village of
Letton, Herefordshire, approximately 16 km north-west
of Hereford. At the time of the Domesday survey,
Letton was held by Roger de Lucy, and the presence
of a priest was recorded here (Thorn and Thorn,
1983). The present church is constructed of local
sandstone with some tufa and the roofs are covered
with stone slates. The earliest structural fabric
of the church, the north wall of the nave, is
dated to the late 11th or early 12th century (RCHME,
1934).
The parish church stands in the
northern part of the churchyard. A topographic
survey of the churchyard was undertaken on 20th
May 2004 by Herefordshire Archaeology staff in
collaboration with the Caring for God's Acre project
of the Diocese of Hereford.
Aims and
Objectives
The aims of the churchyard survey
were:
To produce an accurate plan of the churchyard
at a scale of - 1 :200;
To investigate topographic features of the
churchyard and their relationship to the archaeology
and geology of the surrounding area.
Location and Geology
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Figure 1: Site Location
Plan
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The parish church of St John the Baptist,
Letton is located in the Wye valley at NGR:
SO 33351 24645.
The church is sited approximately 0.7km
north of the present course of the River
Wye at an elevation of 60m OD (Ordnance
Survey 1999).
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The underlying bedrock of the Lower
Old Red Sandstone. The Letton area is the Raglan
Mudstone Formation of the bedrock consists mainly
of easily weathered red-brown mudstones with subordinate
sandstones and limestones (calcretes). The bedrock
is overlain by glacial deposits of the Newer Drift,
composed of till, gravel and silt. The till consists
mainly of reddish brown, clayey to sandy silt,
with unsorted clasts predominantly of small cobble
size but also including larger cobbles and boulders
(British Geological Survey, 1969).
The post-glacial alluvial deposits
of the Wye valley in the Letton area are pale
buffbrown silts derived mainly from the Silurian
rocks of central Wales (British Geological Survey,
1989). These deposits gives rise to typical brown
alluvial soils of the Teme Series (Soil Survey
of England and Wales, 1983). To the north-east
of, and impinging upon, the churchyard is an extensive
area of marshy, or previously marshy, land. This
is the site of a former lake impounded by the
Staunton Moraine (glacial deposits) to the east.
The lacustrine alluvium of the area has given
rise to waterlogged gley soils of the Conway Series
(British Geological Survey, 1989; Soil Survey
of England and Wales, 1983).
Previous
Records
A search of the Herefordshire Sites
and Monuments Record (SMR) revealed the following
records for the parish church and the immediate
environs:
SMR 1705
Site Name
St John the Baptist, Letton
NGR SO 3351 4645
Site Type Church
Period Medieval |
SMR 5692
Site Name Bull Farm, Letton
NGR SO 3360 4660
Site Type Dwelling
Period Post medieval |
SMR 20004
Site Name Old Rectory,
west of church, Letton
NGR SO 3344 4640
Site Type Dwelling
Period Post medieval |
SMR 21736
Site Name Letton Court Gardens
NGR SO 3360 4630
Site Type Landscape Park
Period Post medieval |
SMR 25765
Site Name Letton
NGR SO 3300 4600
Site Type Settlement
Period Medieval |
SMR 35449
Site Name The Old Rectory
NGR SO 3362 4687
Site Type Parsonage
Period Post medieval |
A description of the parish church
and its fittings can he found in: RCHME (1934)
An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in Herefordshire,
Vol. III North-West. Royal Commission on Historical
Monuments, England. London: HMSO pp133-135.
Methods
A topographic survey of the churchyard
was undertaken using an Electronic Distance Meter
(EDM) with a reflective prism. Observations were
recorded and a plan was drawn in the field at
a scale of 1:200 using a plane table, protractor
and scale ruler.
A desk-top survey was undertaken
to identify archaeological sites and features
recorded in the immediate area of the churchyard,
and any previous archaeological research. General
aspects of the geology. geomorphology and soils
of the Letton area were investigated by reference
to published literature of the British Geological
Survey. the Ordnance Survey. and the Soil Survey
of England and Wales.
Results
(figure 2)
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A plan of the churchyard was drawn at a
scale of 1:200, based on data recorded during
the survey.
Topographic features observed are described
below, and their relationship to the archaeology
of the churchyard is discussed.
Archaeological sites and features are referred
to by their unique Herefordshire Sites and
Monuments Primary Record Numbers prefixed
by 'HSM'.
Figure 2
Letton Churchyard Survey Plan
Herefordshire Archaeology 2004
(Click on the plan on the left for a
larger view)
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Discussion
The parish church of St John the
Baptist, Letton (HSM i705) is located in the northern
part of the churchyard. The land surface is fairly
level within the churchyard, rising slightly in
the south-east part. The churchyard is approximately
oval in form, and the present boundaries are curvilinear
on the north, east and south sides, and linear
on the west side. The boundaries are marked by
stone with capped with brick on the north, east
and north-west sides, by a brick wall on the west
side, and by a hedge and earthwork terrace, or
lynchet, On the south side.
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The main entrance to the churchyard is
on the east side, with an iron gate.
Additional entrances are located on the
west side, with an iron gate; at the south-west
corner, with a wooden gate; and at the north-east
corner, presently sealed with a wooden fence.
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The churchyard is bordered on the north
and east sides by access roads.
A garden is located on the south side of
the churchyard; a house (HSM 20004, Old
Rectory) and garden is located on the west
side
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Topographic
Features
The land surface of the churchyard
is generally level, however. several changes of
Elevation were observed. In the south-east part
of the churchyard, a circular area approximately
6m in diameter rises to a height of up to 0.75m
above the level of the surrounding area. The change
of elevation is associated with the growth of
a yew tree at this location, and probably the
subsequent dumping of material around it.
On the south side of the parish
church, a terrace up to 0.35rn high runs parallel
with the south walls of the nave and chancel,
and the east wall of the south transept. This
feature is associated with modern drainage facilities.
The curvilinear boundary on the
south side of the churchyard is marked by a south-facing
earthwork terrace, or lynchet, up to 0.45m high.
The terrace is consistent with the southern boundary
of the churchyard shown on the Parish of Letton
Tithe Map of 1840.
Boundary
Changes
As a result of the survey. no evidence
was observed of major changes to the boundaries
of the churchyard during the 19th and 20th centuries.
The present boundaries are consistent with those
recorded on the Ordnance Survey 1st edition map
of 1891, and, generally, with those recorded on
the parish tithe map of 1840.
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It was observed, however. that the linear
western boundary, marked by a brick wall,
and the angular boundary at the south-west
corner post-date the parish tithe map of
1840, and are inconsistent with the curvilinear
boundaries on the remaining sides and with
the rounded comers of the churchyard.
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The access roads present today on
the north and east sides of the churchyard, and
the house and garden present on the west side
are recorded on the maps of l89l and 1840. The
boundary of the present garden on the south side
of the churchyard is recorded on the Ordnance
Survey map of i891. This area is shown as part
of a larger field. However, on the parish tithe
map of 1840.
Built Structures
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The earliest structural fabric of the present
church (HSM 1705), the north wall of the
nave, is dated to the late 11th or early
12th century.
Architectural features of the north wall
include an external string course of tufa,
and internal 'herring-bone' work.
The nave appears to have been reconstructed
during the middle of 12th century. The chancel
was also constructed or rebuilt at this
time, and was lengthened in the late 13th
century.
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April 2002
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1960s
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The south transept was added c. 1330,
and the north tower was begun soon after.
The timber framed top stage of the tower,
with its plain boarding and pyramidal roof,
was probably constructed in the 17th century.
The south porch, constructed of wood with
stone footings, is modern. The church was
restored in 1883 (RCHME, 1934).
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A timber framed two storey house
(HSM 20004), located on the west side of the churchyard,
is dated to the 16th century and is reported to
have been a former rectory The upper storey of
the house projects on three sides; on the east
side there is a gabled two-storeyed porch and
two gabled dormers; on the west side, a central
gable is present (RCHME, 1934).
A house, known today as the Rectory
(HSM 35449, The Old Rectory), is located 0.5km
north of the parish church on a minor road from
Letton to Kinnersley. This building was constructed
in 1870 by the Rev. Henry Blisset of Letton Court.
It replaced an earlier parsonage. The Rectory
is recorded on the Ordnance Survey map of 1891.
An earlier parsonage is recorded on the tithe
map of 1840. (The tithe apportionment records
the owner as the Rev. Henry Blisset.) It was located
0.25km north of the parish church at the junction
of the present A438 and the Letton to Kinnersley
road, on the north-east side. The parsonage is
not recorded on the ordnance Survey map of 1891.
Letton Court is located to the east
of the churchyard. The present house was built
in 1925, and is the latest of several houses to
occupy the site. The previous house. destroyed
by fire in 1924, was built by the Rev. Henry Blisset
in 1863, and is recorded on the Ordnance Survey
1st edition map of 1891. The house replaced an
earlier structure built in the mid-18th century,
and recorded on the parish tithe map of 1840.
The architect of the 1863 house Samuel Teulon,
also designed the Rectory (HSM 35449). Letton
Court is surrounded by gardens (HSM 21736) that
extend westwards to the south of the churchyard
(Whitehead,2001). The buildings of a 'model farm',
constructed in 1861 are located to the north of
the churchyard.
Conclusion
The oval form and curvilinear boundaries
of Letton churchyard, including the earthwork
terrace, suggest at least a medieval origin. Similar
features have also been associated with churchyards
and burial grounds dated to the first millennium.
Limited evidence of boundary change was observed
in the form of the linear west wall and the angular
south-west corner. These changes appear to have
been made between 1840 (parish tithe map) and
1891 (Ordnance Survey 1st edition map), and may
be associated with reconstruction work undertaken
by the Rev. Henry Blisset.
The presence of a priest at Letton
during the 11th century is recorded by the Domesday
survey. The continuing presence of priests at
Letton is attested by a sequence of rectories,
or parsonages, dating from the 17th century to
at least 1870.
The earliest structural fabric of
the existing church, the north all of the nave,
has been dated to the late 11th or early 12th
century (RCHME, 1934). Two architectural features
that form part of the early fabric, tufa stone
blocks and counter-pitched masonry (producing
a herring-bone effect) may be indicative of the
former existence of a pre-Norman structure (see
Ray, 2001 for discussion of architectural features
associated with 1st millennium churches).
A long history of continuity and
change from the 11th century is recognised at
Letton. Moreover, topographic features of the
churchyard and architectural features of the oldest
structural fabric of the parish church suggest
the possibility of a first millennium origin for
the earliest church and churchyard at Letton.
References
Brisith Geologial Survey (1989)
Geology of the country between Hereford and
Leominster. London: HMSO
Ordnance Survey (1891) Ordnance
Survey 6" to 1 mile Map (1st edition) Southampton:
Ordnance Survey Office
Ordnance Survey (1999) Explorer
201, Knighton and Presteign, Scale 1:25 000. Southampton:
Ordnance Survey
Ray. K. (2001) 'Achaeology and The
Three Early Churches of Herefordshire'. In A Malpas
et al (eds), The Early Church in Herefordshire.
Leominster: Leominster Study Group pp99-148
RCHME (1934) An Inventory of
the Historical Monumnets in Herefordshire Vol
III North West Royal Commission on Historical
Monuments, England, London HMSO
Soil Survey of England and Wales
(1983) Soils of Midland and Western England,
Sheet 3 Southampton Ordnance Survey
Thorn, F. and C. Thorn (1983) Domesday
Book: Herefordshire Chichester: Phillimore
Whitehead, D (2001) A Survey
of Historic Parks and Gardens in Herefordshire
Hereford and Worcester Gardens Trust
Acknowledgements
I would like to acknowledge the
help and co-operation of Derys and Don Maddox
of the Letton Caring for God's Acre project of
the Diocese of Hereford.
I would like to thank Dr. Keith
Ray, the County Archaeologist, and Tim Hoverd,
Archaeological Projects Officer. for their advice
and editorial comments in the preparation of this
report.
Validation
Herefordshire Archaeology operates
a validation system for its reports, to provide
quality assurance and to comply with Best Value
procedures. This report has been checked for accuracy
and clarity of statements of procedure and results.
Dr. Keith Ray, County Archaeologist
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Take
Part
If you would like to take part,
or would like to support this project, please
email godsacre@lettonvillage.com
for more details.
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