Site of St Nicholas's Church, West Horndon (EHER 1852)

Site of former church, south of site of Old Thorndon Hall Summary from record 1851: The site of the former church is south of site of Old Thorndon Hall

Original HER entry merged with NRHE data import. Site of former church, south of that of the Old Hall. <1> On map of 1598, has a crenelated west tower, weathercock, south porch. Demolished 1734. <2> On map by Walker of 1598, the church was demolished around 1734, having grown ruinous. The site is partly ploughed, with brick, tile, bone and masonry visible on the surface. This area is quite clearly raised and surrounded by a former ditch. <3>-<6> The church site is around 4m south of the hedge line, marked by a dense scatter of building debris, around 26m east-west x 8m north-south. Thinner scatter over churchyard area. The churchyard boundaries to the west and south had gone by the time of the OS 25inch. Building materials were seen: small peg tiles (two types), Tudor and later bricks, Kentish Ragstone, oolite, shelly limestone, Caen stone?, Purbeck floor slab (white, not the black variety), worn glazed floor tiles, mortar crumbs, scanty human bones, very few flints. More debris, north of the church site and south of the hedge line, suggests another building. Further east soil along the north edge of the field changes colour 70m east of the old churchyard boundary suggesting an old pasture or occupation in this area. <7> - <11> Site Assessment = Now partly woodland, partly under plough. Recommended for scheduling. <2> Under plough. Not further threatened unless land is ploughed more deeply than at present (1979). <7> Building materials included sandstone, gypsum plaster, fine oolite, shelly oolite, oolite-?Caen. Purbeck flagstone and sandstone probably came from flooring. Oolite-?Caen from a large piece with 2 small carved surfaces and one worked face surviving. Gypsum plaster is part of a lump around 200 x 100 x 50 (cm?). Buff-? Two kinds of off- white mortars. <8> Finds from site of church included peg tile fragments, black-glazed tile fragment, waste(?) fragment of glazed brick, base sherd of post medieval pottery. <9> 2 groups of floor tiles came from the church, both groups were 15th-early 16th century. Group I are Flemish, Group II local copies of I. <10> Field Survey, 1953 Site indicated by slightly raised area in conjunction with large scatter of building debris. <12> - <14> The burials recorded in the two registers of this parish include around 34 where the location of the grave is described. These are distributed as follow; in the Chancel 20 between 1625 and 1733 AD; in the Church there are five between 1628 and 1673AD; In the South Chapel one in 1695; in the Churchyard before the south door seven between 1630 and 1671AD (these are mostly Petre family servants); one grave is elsewhere in the Churchyard. There is also reference to a North Vestry, burials are recorded of a mother and stillborn infant, 1635, and of a servant 'Grievously scalded' with consumption. A number of these entries refer to earlier burials nearby so that it will be possible to identify other graves with their occupants. A map of 1598 shows the church in elevation. <15> The parish was combined with Ingrave in 1735 and the church demolished. The church and graveyard are no longer defined on the ground and are under ploughland. The site of the church and the adjacent hall has been recommended for scheduling. <16> The area of the site is currently in an area which has been under arable cultivation for several years but is soon to be taken out of cultivation. The site has in the past been recommended for scheduling and may again be when it is considered whether the surviving remains are of natural importance along with other parish churches as part of the Monuments Protection Programme. Now that the area of the church has been clearly defined by field walking it is important that the site is taken out of arable cultivation and the area allowed to form permanent grassland. This would provide ideal conditions for the preservation of any surviving below ground remains of the church. Further non-destructive investigation of the site coupled perhaps with small scale trial trenching could help to answer questions concerning the construction and history of the church. <17> Site Scheduled February 2004 - notification received May 2004. <18> Aerial photograph <19>