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

The Parish

The parish of Quatford lies in southeastern Shropshire roughly 2 miles south of the market town of Bridgnorth, Quatford sits on the A442 road which links Bridgnorth with Kidderminster in Worcestershire and stands on the eastern banks of the River Severn. Quatford is a small roadside village with most properties lining that road whilst across the Severn the wider parish also included the substantial settlement of Eardington lying along the meandering B4555. It was Eardington which hald the main non-farming economic activity with the iron-rich rocks exploited for iron production, a small coal mine also operated for a short while. The wider parish would have been primarily farmed using pastoral methods. The Severn was also navigable beyond Quatford and a small trade took place transporting goods along its course. Modern developments have come to the parish, a railway line between Bridgnorth and Kidderminster is nowadays a heritage steam line following closure from the national network. Quatford is drained southwards by the Severn which continues in that direction for many miles before emerging into the Bristol Channel.Quatford is sited around 50 metres above the sea with Eardington some 10 metres higher, land rises westwards of the Severn into Shropshire where spots reach close to 140 metres on occasion in rolling terrain. Quatford parish was typically sized for its area covering a little over 1,800 acres and supporting around 550 parishioners. Quatford does not have a detailed entry in Domesday Book being identified only as an un-populated manor.

The Church

St Mary Magdalene's church sits just east of the A442 accessed from a small lane running out and back from the main road, the church sits atop a sandstone outcrop in a delightful setting. The church;s foundation is recorded as early as the late 11th century by the local Earl of Shrewsbury as a collegiate church, the tufa-built chancel is a relic of that Norman church despite later remodelling in the 14th century. Pevsner bemoans that the details of the "wide and monumental" chancel have worn over the centuries since construction. The church also had a 12th century nave but this and the western tower were rebuilt in 1714 removing any such historical legacy. A typical Victorian restoration of 1857 added a southern aisle and a southern porch, it also rendered away much of the 18th century detailing from the nave leaving the western tower complete with battlements and pinnacles redolent of its 18th century Gothic-ism. The short access lane ends below the church at a roughly surfaced parking are from which a flight of 20+ steps rises into the churchyard, the churchyard is compact with many close-set trees at the western ends making for some difficulties but not insurmountable ones for the phtographer.