Stanford on Soar, Nottinghamshire - a photo on Flickriver

Plan of the church of St John the Baptist, Stanford on Soar, Nottinghamshire
The region has been inhabited for centuries going back it would seem to the Romans - a tesselated pavement was discovered about 4ft. below the surface in the graveyard.

The present building dates from 13c, and the first recorded rector here was Robert de Gloucester in 1229, the papal taxation roll of 1291 gives the annual value of the church as £10.

The lord of the manor in 1558 was Robert Raynes, the royal goldsmith who built the first hall . A century later his great grandson whose son sold it to Thomas Lewes , alderman of London, to pay off his debts.
Thomas Lewes and his family restored and beautified the church www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/d44T5v and placed the Lewes / later Dashwood vault on the site of the south aisle medieval chantry chapel, over which their family pew was built.
The Lewes family continued here for 4 generations until it passed by marriage to Samuel Phillipps of Garendon husband of great grand daughter Sophia Lewes
Samuel Phillipps died without issue and the property then passed to the Dashwood family via the marriage of Sir Richard Dashwood with Elizabeth daughter of Thomas, eldest son of Alderman Thomas Lewes. . The first Dashwood to occupy the old hall was Charles Vere Dashwood, www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/gTd7V2 , however proving unsuitable, a new hall was built during 1771-74. The Dashwoods continued here until 1953 They lived in some style with 13 resident domestic staff and further employees living in housing in the grounds.
After Samuel Vere Dashwood’s death in 1876 www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/6g5c7y the estate was bought c1887 by the Ratcliff family brewers from Burton-on-Trent.
A restoration of 1886, financed by a Dashwood son in law, Rev Davenport with £300, swept away the reading and clerks' desks on the three decker pulpit and the family pew in the south aisle. Pitch pine pews were installed and the former solitary stove was replaced with a "hot water heating apparatus"
The Ratcliff 1893/94 restoration costing £11,000, involved the rebuilding of the chancel (now greatly dilapidated, its walls filled with rubble now ground to dust) with added vestry and organ loft, and total refurbishment with oak pews, choirstalls , screen , pulpit, font, organ etc & new lighting. The east window filled with Dashwood stained glass was raised. The stone flags surrounding gravestones were covered with tiles and carpeted over. www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/6TP83D www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/x21v4j A south porch was also rebuilt.
At that time the tomb under an arch in the north aisle was also exposed to view. www.flickr.com/gp/52219527@N00/YuUCQu

The old pews—made of deal—were used by the rector, in 1882, as panelling for one of the rooms at the parsonage. Rough deal benches, about 3ft. long, had been used up to 1882 in the middle gangway by the school children, and two of these benches, for some years after the restoration mentioned in the register, took the place of trestles for the coffin at funerals.

In 1928 Sir Julian Cahn purchased Stanford Hall. Sir Julian was a cricket enthusiast and a member of the Magic Circle.
After his death in 1944 the Co-operative Union purchased the Hall to convert into a College. The Co-operative Union left Stanford Hall in 2002.

In 1987 the lead on the roof was stolen, costing the church £4500 to replace.

www.nottshistory.org.uk/articles/tts/tts1910/summer1.htm

Taken on: September 29, 2019

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