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

The Parish

The parish of Shereford is situated in the northwestern portion of central Norfolk. Shereford is located about 2 miles west of the market town of Fakenham. Shereford sits in lanes about a mile south of the A148 road which links Fakenham with the port of King's Lynn. There is not much to Shereford, no village as such, just a scatter of farms and cottages sitting on the southern banks of the infant River Wensum. The area was largely arable at the time of this transcript and little has changed since although the Wensum water meadows offered variety in the form of pastures. The Wensum drains southeastwards to join the River Yare east of the city of Norwich and to reach the North Sea though the port of Great Yarmouth. Shereford is sited at around 40 metres above the sea, as it is in the valley local heights are some 20 metres higher but the landscape could best be described as gently rolling. Norfolk parishes are nationally small and Shereford is one of the smaller, it covered just over 800 acres and supported a population of less than 90 parishioners. In Domesday times Shereford was held by one William of Warenne and was equally small offering just 2 ploughs and a small meadow.

The Church

St Nicholas' church sits almost on the banks of the Wensum on a bend in the main lane through Shereford. The church, with its round tower characteristic of early churches, is old for a Norfolk church with many features from the Norman period. The southern doorway is Norman as is one window in the nave, much else is a century or two older e.g. 14th century. As with many Norfolk churches the Victorians made restorations and changes in the 19th century, the roofing dates from that period as does the conical top (described by Pevsner as "silly") to the western tower. Otherwise this is a pleasant small church tucked away in a remote corner of the county. The church sits on its bend, with room to park out front, behind a low brick-topped flint wall with a metal gateway granting access to the small churchyard. Views of the church are rather restricted to those from the south by many trees.