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

The Parish

The parish of Ketton lies in southern Rutland forming s stretch of the county's border with neighbouring Northamptonshire. Ketton is located roughly 4 miles southwest of the Lincolnshire town of Stamford and stands on the A6121 road which links Stamford with the A47 (Peterborough to Leicester) road and onward to Uppingham. Ketton is a rather linear village which follows the A6121 for almost a mile, it sits parallel with the course of the River Chater which largely delimits its configuration. Across the Chater lies the subsidiary settlements of Aldgate and Geeston. Ketton's economy is dominated by the fine-grained, butter-coloured Jurassic oolitic limestone that underlies the village, from the medieval period onwards it overtook farming as the main income of the area. Whilst a mixture of arable and pastoral methods was still present, the latter on the flood-plains of the Chater & Welland, the easily worked limestone grew into major employer. The stone is highly suitable for prestigious building work and it features strongly in the buildings of the colleges of Cambridge University as well as both locally and across the land. In 1928 the Portland Cement Company took over many of the old workings and from that time Ketton has been a major producer of cement. Modern developments have come to the parish, the railway between Stamford & Oakham passes through splitting Aldgate from Geeston and taking much of the cement production from nearby sidings, Ketton no longer has a station, however. Ketton is drained by a combination of the Rivers Chater & Welland, the latter being dominant, the Welland passes through Stamford, across Fenland to Spalding and onwards to reach the North Sea through The Wash. Ketton is sited on rising ground from 30 metres at the rivers to almost 70 metres above the sea at its northwestern edges, land rises to around 93 metres before descending to the reservoir of Rutland Water. Ketton parish was one of the more extensive parishes in the county covering just over 3,100 acres which would have supported a population of close to 950 parishioners. In Domesday times Ketton was a holding of King William and a wealthy one to hold, its assets of 19 ploughs, meadows & woodland and 2 mills provided a comfortable contribution to the monarch's income.

The Church

St Mary's church sits to the south of the A6121 almost on the banks of the River Chater and on the northern side of Church Road adjacent to the Railway Inn. St Mary is a magnificent church graced by its soaring 148 feet broach spire above its central crossing tower. The cruciform layout is indicative of a Norman foundation, the church is mentioned in Domesday Book and its existence is confirmed in documents of 1146.  The original 12th century church was a simple cruciform structure with an aisleless nave but much has been overwritten by the substantial expansion of the church that began in 1190. Building began at the western end and transitioned steadily eastwards, the richly carved doorway is dated to the Transitional era between pure Romanesque and Early English Gothic. It is the latter style which dominates further east, the nave arcades, chancel, and tower bell stage showcase triple lancet windows and sophisticated clustered columns with water-holding bases from the Early English Gothic period. The tower's impressive spire was added in c1325,  major feat of engineering to put it into place. The Perpendicular era saw a typical feature of that period, a clerestory was inserted and the roof raised to improve internal lighting. The original transepts of the church were foreshortened in c1774 being cut back to there present size. The church received restorations under the auspices of two differing architects between 1861 and 1863, the first of these saw most of the window tracery renewed whilst the later phase tackled the chancel. Church Road is wide enough for on-street parking west of the churchyard, the site presents some difficulties for the photographer being only a thin southern strip between the road and the church, raised too above road height, a second entry point to the northwest gives access to the extensive graveyard to the north but hat carries the usual caveats regarding sunshine.