England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Winthorpe St Mary

The Parish

The parish of Winthorpe lies in the extreme east of Lincolnshire, indeed it is separated from Lincolnshire's North Sea coast only by a thin strip of foreshore which is part of Skegness parish. Winthorpe is located roughly 2 miles north of Skegness and sits on the A52 road which connects Skegness with Mablethorpe. Winthorpe has expanded with the development of coastal facilities for the beach trade, the village formerly would have been a pastoral farming community dependent upon cattle grazing for its income. With the growth of day tripping to the coast it has acquired the typical features of such small beach-side settlements with cafes, arcades and caravans.  Today it is part of coastal sprawl that extends north from Skegness to Chapel St Leonards. As a coastal settlement numerous channels drain as part of man-influenced drainage north to the North Drain and the sea through Ingoldmells. Winthorpe is sited at between 2 & 6 metres above the sea and land is at a similar height or even lower for some considerable distance. Winthorpe parish was a little larger than most Lincolnshire parishes, covering almost 2,300 acres it would have supported a population of around 250 parishioners. Winthorpe is not mentioned in Domesday Book.

The Church

St Mary's church sits west of the A52 by almost 3/4 of a mile at Church End and is an elegant church in total contrast to the rough-and-ready architecture of the newer parts of Winthorpe. The church has its origins in the 12th century but was so extensively rebuilt in the Perpendicular era that it is almost a complete church of that style. Remnants of the 12th century noted by Pevsner are some pier bases and a capital. The remainder of the church, in a mixture of grey and green-stone is Perpendicular spanning the 14th, 15th and a little into the 16th centuries. The bell openings are late as is the ornate southern porch which documentary evidence dates as c1520. The church carries that typical Perpendicular feature of a clerestory with this one battlemented and topped by pinnacles. Like most churches the Victorians made their restoration, in this case a relatively light affair of 1880. Church End leads to the church and the Charnwood Tavern, more typically architecturally of the modern Winthorpe, where a large car park outside the churchyard can be found. The churchyard has neatly clipped hedges to the road and is relatively open with few obstacles for the photographer.