England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
North Wootton St Mary Magdalene

The Parish

The parish of North Wootton lies in the north of Dorset not too far from its border with neighbouring Somerset. North Wootton is located roughly 2 miles southeast of the market town of Sherborne and sits on and mostly north of the A3030 road which links Sherborne with Bishops' Caundle. North Wootton is a tiny place, a short run of properties sat alongside the A303 is complemented by further properties to its north between that road and the ruin of the old parish church. North Wootton was a typical farming community of the area with a mixture of both arable and pastoral methods with the latter dominant, the local stone was also quarried but was inferior and only used for road mending and a large copse of woodland would have been managed for typical products. North Wootton is drained southwards by a small brook which feeds the Caundle Brook running eastwards to join in quick succession the River Lydden and the Stour, the latter heads southeast and then east to reach the English Channel through Poole Harbour. North Wootton is sited at around 110 metres above the sea on a shelf of higher ground above Sherborne, to the west that shelf reaches 158 metres standing high above the Yeo and forming the watershed. North Wootton parish was one of the smaller in its county covering just 619 acres and supporting fewer than 100 parishioners. North Wootton is not mentioned in Domesday Book.

The Church

Churches in the parish have had a chequered history and, indeed, there is no functioning church any longer. The old church of St Mary Magdalene was demolished c1883 leaving only the western tower which is dated to c1400 and Perpendicular in style, it stands north of most properties in the small village alone in fields, rather strangely the bells were left behind and were rung to announce services in its replacement church. The Victorian replacement was built east of the main junction with the A3030 on its northern side and about 250 yards east. Some of the windows from the old church were re-set in its building and, unusually for its time (1883) they maintained the Perpendicular styling. That church has now been deconsecrated and sold as a private house. Given the circumstances access is not permitted and any views must be obtained solely from the public highways.