Bigby Church ~ A Look at the Background & History
Bigby church in Lincolnshire sits in the Lincolnshire Wolds overlooking the Ancholme valley.
The current building dates back to the 13th century
All Saints church in Bigby has undergone two major renovations, one in 1780 and the other 1878 which was considerable and was carried out by our old friend James Fowler. The remnants are 13th century whilst the south aisle is 14th century.
The tower is relatively low and looked ancient in origin when I visited, indeed subsequently I note Pevsner suggests a circa 13th century date.
Existing parish registers date from 1696 and there’s a strong connection with the Tyrwhit family with monuments and effigies inside the church, one for Sir Robert Tyrwhit dated 1581.
As happens so often nowadays I was unable to gain access to the church so was denied the chance to see photograph a c13th century sculpture and a similarly dated stone effigy of a lady (described by Pevsner as ‘terribly re-cut’ !)
I’ve found reference to another figure which used to reside in the north aisle which was damaged during removal. It was of a woman, supposedly from the Skipworth family, and it had a Saxon inscription which was dated 1156 ! I’ve not been able to pin this down, to my satisfaction, to anything mentioned by Mee or Pevsner - is it still in the belfry ?
There are other monuments and brasses as well so hopefully one day I’ll be able to return and bring you pictures of the treasures within.
The early English Church at Bigby
It’s a nice place to visit and well worth the effort, especially so as you can combine it with a number of other interesting stops.
Take the A1084 between Brigg and Caistor and you can take in several other beautiful village churches in one small stretch. I’ll cover all the rest of the villages in subsequent articles but my ultimate destination was Wrawby Mill a great trip and one I would readily recommend to others.
See Our Complete List Of Churches in Lincolnshire
If you have any information you could share then please do leave a comment as I should like to make this as definitive as possible.
Many thanks in advance
All the best
Rod
chris keyworth said,
January 31, 2010 @ 10:10 pm
Did you find any refrence to the roman villa at bigby…..
Rod said,
February 1, 2010 @ 8:16 am
Chris,
I didn’t as I confined my search to the church itself but I’ve just had a look on the English Heritage site and thee’s 3 pages for Bigby !
Looks like earthwork city !
Coins in Scunthorpe museum as well !
It’s my ambition to find an ancient coin - just one will do - doesn’t need to be a hoard
Best
Rod
Amiguru said,
February 1, 2010 @ 8:45 am
Rod,
To achieve your desire, go and walk the money field at Kirmington and get your eye in - so much more satifying than relying on technology.
Assuming that roman is ancient enough for you.
Mr. Mischief,
le
N
Rod said,
February 1, 2010 @ 8:55 am
Neville,
I’ll walk that field in one ! (be pleased not to get that - it means you’re young)
Roman will do very nicely thank you sir -
Am I actually allowed to walk this field and if so can I get a slightly narrower location via email.
I warn everybody in advance - if I ever do find a coin you’ll all regret it - imagine the mosie I’ll make about it
Best
Rod
Amiguru said,
February 1, 2010 @ 9:54 am
Rod,
“Am I actually allowed to walk this field and if so can I get a slightly narrower location via email.”
Done….
N
le
chris keyworth said,
February 1, 2010 @ 12:08 pm
rod
i gave you a plan of the crop marks to the field when we met last however you may get told off if you go on there as it is a guarded site, the public footpath goes along the edge of the field. take care it is a closed site…
regards
chris
Rod said,
February 1, 2010 @ 12:36 pm
Chris,
Dilwyn Jones - I’m looking at it now - fascinating.
I’ll have to go, public footpath only, take a look and write it up - looks really interesting.
Thanks and regards
Rod
chris keyworth said,
February 1, 2010 @ 12:41 pm
if you want me to come with you let me know..
Rod said,
February 1, 2010 @ 2:00 pm
Chris,
sounds great, many thanks - about time we had another trip !
We’ll sort something out via email
Best
Rod
chris keyworth said,
February 1, 2010 @ 2:22 pm
yer great i will show you somthing a bit special at kirmington, its a very historically rich area if you know where to look…
regards
chris
wezzo said,
July 19, 2010 @ 9:04 pm
Hi,
Do you know where i can find any information on the history of Bigby. I have looked on the English Heritage site but can find no reference to Bigby.
Thanks.
Rod said,
July 20, 2010 @ 8:06 am
Wezzo,
thanks fo the comment and welcome to the site. I too was disappointed with what I could find out about Bigby.
Rest assured anything that comes to light will go on this page - that’s a large part of the purpose of this page to provide a place for material that subsequently comes to light - whoever finds it or knows it.
All the best
Rod
adey tuplin said,
September 14, 2010 @ 8:35 pm
just wondered if you knew anything of the tunnel that supposedly joins the church to nearby kettleby, if you go round to the other side of the church there is a large concrete slab that if you stamp ur foot on is obviously hollow
Rod said,
September 15, 2010 @ 7:55 am
Adey,
thanks for the comment and welcome to the site.
I’ve not heard of it specifically but most churches tend to have tunnel rumours and whilst many had tunnels of sorts they rarely extended any great distance - most tend to be urban myths in my experience.
Perhaps somebody else has heard of thisone though
All the best
Rod
the saint said,
February 6, 2011 @ 10:57 am
i grew up in BIGBY i have been told stories by elders of the village about a tunnel stretching from kettleby to the church..
it has been seen by his grandfather
Bigby is a very special place…to all of us that grew up there…my heart is always there….so is my father
Rod said,
February 7, 2011 @ 8:01 am
Saint,
thanks for the comment and welcome to the site. I’ve not heard this particular tunnel rumour Saint although there are such stories about many churches - it would be interesting if perhaps some could be verified one day
Regards
Rod
Revd Gordon Plumb said,
August 31, 2011 @ 8:07 am
Rod
I managed to get in yesterday because I met someone I recognised (and who recognised me) - he told me that his daughter two doors down the road had a key! The church is well worth trying to get into. I am putting my images on my Flickr stream.
Rod said,
August 31, 2011 @ 8:50 am
Hi Gordon,
many thanks indeed and a warm welcome to the site - I’ll take a look now
Kind regards
Rod