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

The Parish

The parish of West Somerton lies in the extreme east of Norfolk not too far from its eastern North Sea coast. West Somerton is located roughly 5 miles north of the port & coastal resort of Great Yarmouth and sits in an area markedly devoid of significantly numbered roads, the closest such road being the A149 (Great Yarmouth to North Walsham & Cromer) which sits almost 4 miles to West Somerton's southwest. West Somerton is a small loosely structured village which sits on the former northern shore of what, in Roman times, was the island of Flegg, today with marshland infilling around it a mere "island" of slightly higher land above sea level. West Somerton would have had a rather diverse economy for Norfolk with early gazetteers estimating 45% of the parish acreage set to pasture, its location, on the edge of Martham Broad, also gave the parish access to reed thatch harvesting, wildfowling and its staithe (a Norfolk term for a landing stage) on the headwaters of the River Thurne gave it access to river-based transport of agricultural produce. Today the area is a widlife haven with cranes, harriers and geese drawing enthusiasts especially to winter roosts. The River Thurne, rising less than 2 miles from the North Sea rather perversely drains the parish westwards, joining the Bure and the remainder of Norfolk's Broadland rivers to exit to the North Sea through Great Yarmouth. West Somerton is sited at between 1 & 10 metres above the sea, the land is rather low-lying for many miles with local high spots of just over 20 metres. Even by Norfolk standards West Somerton parish was on the small side, covering barely 1,200 acres it would have supported a population of around 250 parishioners. In Domesday times West Somerton was recorded together with its defunct eastern neighbour, East Somerton, and was shared by no fewer than 4 landholders, including King William, himself, its assets totalled 17 ploughs, the usual meadows but also included 3 salthouses reflecting its coastal nature.

The Church

St Mary's church sits in between West & East Somerton on the slightly higher ground of the former island. The presence of a round tower in eastern England immediately alerts to an early church, however for once the tower is not the earliest part of the church. Whilst most such towers are Saxo-Norman or Norman, St Mary's tower is of the 13th century with lancet style bell-openings to prove its credentials. The tower is preceded by the Norman Romanesque nave with the southern doorway tentatively given  date of c1200. The Early English Gothic period of the 13th century saw the round tower added and the earlier nave shows signs of being extended to accommodate it. As one moves eastward through the church the dating becomes later in the medieval period with the chancel in a Perpendicular style of the classic Norfolk church-building era, Pevsner dates it to the 15th century. A typical Victorian restoration completes the picture, in this case of 1867, at which point much of the fenestration was renewed along with a general refresh. The L-shaped dead-end lane of Church Road leads to the churchyard and a small patch of rough ground at the entrance to the adjacent field is frequently used for parking. The churchyard is hedged around, capacious and with no obstacles for the photographer.