England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
North Coates St Nicholas

The Parish

The parish of North Coates, usually rendered Cotes today, lies in northeastern Lincolnshire forming a stretch of the county's North Sea coastline. North Coates is located roughly 8 miles south east of the port of Grimsby and sits on and mostly north of the A031 road which links Grimsby with Mablethorpe. North Coates is a linear village, a small footprint on the A1031 but most properties lining the lane which runs northwards from there headed for Tetney Lock. North Coates sits upon the flat and highly productive coastal plain of the county, an area at or close to sea level with much land reclaimed from the sea which now sits behind tall coastal embankments. The farming land which was so created is used mainly as rich pastures but with increasing arable as more efficient drainage keeps the land drier. Much of the area close to the coast was the site of RAF North Coates, a military airfield from World War I onwards which finally closed in 1990 and is only used today by a flying club who have a single grass strip. Other modern developments have come to the parish, the Louth Canal, connecting that town with the North Sea, border much of the northern and western edges of the parish. North Coates drainage is entirely man-influenced with series drains taking water to the North Sea at Tetney Haven. North Coates is sited at just 3 metres above the sea, a height typical of the surrounding landscape for several miles. North Coates parish was typically sized for the area covering just under 2,100 acres which would have supported a population of close to 250 parishioners, it is expected that the volume of marriages recorded is short by around 40% as a result of the loss of the early register and incomplete Bishops' Transcripts. North Coates is not specifically mentioned in Domesday Book.

The Church

St Nicholas' church sits on the western side of The Fleetway, the northward running lane, roughly midway through the village. This is a church which has changed markedly as a consequence of an extensive Victorian rebuild. Some existing masonry was reused in the rebuild and what survives indicates that the church was essentially one of the 13th century Early English Gothic period. Pevsner finds original material in the southern doorway, the 3-bay northern arcade, the southern arcade and the chancel arch. Everything else including the western tower with its octagonal parapet and pyramidal roof dates from the rebuild of 1865. At least the architects attempted to keep the Early English Gothic styling but as Pevsner readily points out it is a Victorian reinterpretation of that style. The main entrance to the churchyard is at the southern end where The Fleetway is of ample width and visibility to allow on-street parking. The western tower is a little compromised by close-set trees but otherwise there are no significant obstacles for the photographer.