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

The Parish

The parish of Christon lies in northern Somerset roughly 5 miles southeast of the coastal resort of Weston super Mare. Christon sits about 2 miles south of the A368 road which links Weston super Mare with Bath. Christon is a tiny village little more than a straggle of properties along a lane skirting the eastern edge of Bleadon Hill and sitting in the broad gap that the Lox Yeo River has carved through the once-complete Mendip range of limestone hills. Christon is a farming parish with pastures split between lowland for cattle and higher ground on the limestone for sheep. Modern developments have come to the parish, however, the modern M5 motorway takes advantage of the same gap in the Mendip range to carve its way through between Bristol and Exeter, Christon is drained southwards by the Lox Yeo River which soon meets the Axe and turns westwards to reach the outer Bristol Channel south of Weston super Mare. Christon is sited at around 40 metres above the sea but Bleadon Hill rises abruptly westwards topping out at 175 metres within 3/4 of a mile of Christon, similarly to the east the main Mendip range rises to 211 metres on Wavering Down little more than 1 1/2 miles from Christon. Christon parish was tiny, covering barely 572 acres and supporting fewer than 100 parishioners. Christon is not mentioned in Domesday Book.

The Church

St Mary's church sits at the northeastern end of the run of properties on the northern side of Banwell Road. Like many small and little used churches St Mary has ancient origins with herringbone masonry and long-and-short quoins in its chancel indicative of a possible pre-Conquest original build, certainly at least early Norman and possibly Saxon. Both the southern porch and its doorway continue the early theme with Pevsner dating the porch to c1170. The layout would be cruciform had the church been large enough to warrant transepts but retains the central crossing tower which, too, shows similar 12th century origins in its double-headed corbels at its angles. There are a few later medieval changes with Perpendicular styled windows shown in the nave, undoubtedly early replacements. All is, however, complicated by the restoration of 1875 which, according to Pevsner, was one which added "Normanizing" to an already Norman origin, it now being difficult to tell what was original and what was Victorian attempts to replicate the same. The corbelled parapet for the tower being a good example of the issue it being 19th century yet built on 12th century structures. A further restoration of 1896 tackled many windows and left the church as we see it today. Banwell Road is narrow but is broadened by the entrance to the churchyard allowing a car or two to safely park on-road. Close proximity trees do remove the favoured southeastern aspect but all other angles are available for the photographer.