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Summary

Site of the former Church of St John the Divine. The church was built in 1838 and underwent restorations in 1896 and 1908. It was demolished c.1990.

Full description

Historically part of Laughton parish, this church was built as a chapel-of-ease for the villagers of Wildsworth. It was constructed on land to the south of the village in 1838, at a cost of c.£450, with the majority of the money being donated by Lady Gordon. The church was dedicated to St John the Divine, and was built to the designs of Charles Biggs. It was constructed of yellow brick with ashlar dressings, and features a skate roof. It has a polygonal west tower of three stages, with the topmost marked by an offset small spire. The four-centred west door has hood mould and label stops. The parishoners inserted a stained glass window in memory of the late Lady Gordon soon after the initial construction. The church underwent restorations in 1896 and 1908, with additions to the north-east of a single storey vestry with boiler house under, and an extension to the east end of the chancel. Stained glass by Charles Kempe was added to the east window in 1916. The building was no longer in use at the time of listing in March 1982. For the full description and the legal address of this listed building please refer to the appropriate List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest. {1}{2}{3}

The church had had been visited by the Church of England's Pastoral Measure Officer in April 1981. The church was in a poor state of repair at the time of survey, with signs of movement in the walls, bad erosion to parts of the stonework, and some slates missing from the roof, allowing considerable damp penetration to the interior. The church was subsequently declared redundant on the 1st of July 1982. {4}

The church was designed in a Norman style by the architect Charles Biggs. It consisted of a chancel, nave and a spired polygonal west tower containing one bell, all constructed of cream facing bricks with a slate roof. It was demolished in the 1990s, and was subsequently delisted. {5}{6}{7}

<1> William White, 1856, History, Gazetteer and Directory of Lincolnshire (Second Edition), p.195 (Bibliographic Reference). SLI886.

<2> Department of the Environment, 1985, List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest, 4/56 (Index). SLI6757.

<3> Nikolaus Pevsner and John Harris, with Nicholas Antram, 1989, Buildings of England: Lincolnshire (Second Edition), p.799 (Bibliographic Reference). SLI1062.

<4> Council for the Care of Churches, 1981, Pastoral Measure Report - Wildsworth, St John the Divine, - (Unpublished Document). SLI17231.

<5> Michael Credland, 2014, The First World War Memorials of Lincolnshire, p.193 (Bibliographic Reference). SLI14624.

<6> English Heritage / Historic England, 2008->, Advice Report from a Heritage Asset Assessment, Case No.1484784 (Unpublished Document). SLI13505.

<7> Historic England, 2012->, Designation Decision Records (De-Designated and Non-Designated Entries), 1486650 (Index). SLI14492.

Monument Types

• CHURCH (Post Medieval to Late 20th Century - 1838 AD to 1990 AD?)

Sources and further reading

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