England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Bircham Tofts St Andrew

The Parish

The parish of Bircham Tofts lies in northwestern Norfolk about 8 miles southeast of the seaside resort of Hunstanton. Bircham Tofts is, in reality, a mere adjunct to its larger neighbour Great Bircham being merely an eastern extension of that place. Bircham Tofts sits on the B1155 road which links Great Bircham with Burnham Market. This area of the county is underlain by porous chalk with light and infertile soils, it lent itself to light grazing and the area is characterised by sheep runs and, formerly, rabbit warrenries. Today with modern fertilisers and machinery the spread of arable production has been inexorable changing the landscape radically. The porous geology dictates that there is little surface drainage and what water there is makes its way eastwards to form part of the nearby River Tat, the latter joins, in turn, the Wensum and then the Yare to meet the North Sea though the port of Great Yarmouth. Bircham Tofts is sited at around 60 metres above the sea in gentle terrain where high points rarely go above 70 metres. Bircham Tofts parish was fairly typically sized for its county, albeit this area often has larger parishes, covering just over 1,400 acres it would have supported a population of close to 150 parishioners. Despite its small size Bircham Tofts has a long history, it is shown in Domesday Book as a holding of Bishop Odo of Bayeux with merely 4 ploughs as assets.

The Church

As can be seen from the imagery St Andrew is an ivy-covered ruin, it sits on the eastern side of Church Lane about 100 metres south of the B1155 amongst a wasteland of nettle and bramble. Always a small church with a small congregation the church lost its chancel as it was "pulled down a long time ago" according to Pevsner. The remainder became redundant and by the 1950s was roofless and overgrown. Pevsner struggles to identify much dating detail noting only the 13th century Early English Gothic doorway and a 15th century Perpendicular arch between the western tower and the nave. Some Victorian restoration attempted to maintain the church as the tower shows 19th century brick mullioned bell-openings and has a window of similar age. Church Lane is barely wide enough for a car so it is better to park in the village and intrepidly bash your way through the undergrowth to visit, a squeeze through the bordering hedging was required at my visit.