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

The Parish

The parish of Witnesham lies in southeastern Suffolk roughly 4 miles north of the county town of Ipswich. Witnesham sits on the B1077 road which links Ipswich through to Debenham. Witnesham is a long straggle of a village, it runs from around the infant Martlesham Creek's bridge northwards along the B1077 for over a mile and a half, the area around the bridge is one centre of properties whilst the second sits at a crossroads, a little over a quarter of a mile further north where Church Lane arrives in from the west. Church Lane holds both the parish church and Witnesham Hall, a mid 16th century timber-framed house. Witnesham, like most Suffolk parishes, is and was an arable farming parish, cereals, oil seed and beet dominate today in broad and often hedge-less fields whereas at the time of this transcript a more rotational system, usually a 4-year cycle, would have been in place. Witnesham is drained eastwards by Martlesham Creek which runs the short distance to Martlesham where it merges with the Deben for its lengthy estuary to the North Sea. Witnesham is sited on steadily rising ground from 25 metres above the sea at the southern end to 50 metres at the north, the latter height being typical of the plateau-like nature of much of the area. Witnesham parish covered close to 2,000 acres and would have supported a population of around 550 parishioners. In Domesday times Witnesham was a small manor of just 19 households held by a deacon, Walter, it offered 7 ploughs and a small meadow.

The Church

St Mary's church stands on the southern side of Witnesham Church Lane, a dead-end lane running westwards from the B1077 which becomes a track beyond the church and hall. Documentary evidence records a church here as early as 1208 but nothing of the 13th century era survives within the church's fabric, the priests' doorway of the late 13th century appears to be the only Early English Gothic feature, however it is likely the core of the nave and chancel were in place at that time but are undateable. The main style shown by the church is that of the early 14th century, the Decorated era which would indicate a substantial rebuilding from the early proto-church, the southern porch tower is the major product of this phase although its flushwork parapet came later. The late 15th and early 16th century saw a second wave of rebuilding in the Perpendicular style which added the southern aisle and inserted a clerestory for improved internal lighting. Restoration came early in the Victorian era, here in 1845, and was needed as the church was in a dilapidated state further work followed in 1868 which rebuilt the northern vestry. To the east of the site lies the church hall which has a substantial parking area allowing a relaxed visit, the churchyard is shaded from the road by a thick border of trees which continues around the whole site, a few isolated specimens provide further obstacles but enough angles remain for the photographer.