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Summary

Map comparison shows the churchyard to have been extended to the north in the 20th century into the area of a former rookery. The western end of the churchyard was used as a burial place for drowned sailors.

Location

Protected Status

• Listed Building (I) 1333125: CHURCH OF ST NECTAN
• Listed Building (II) 1104457: STILE, LYCHGATE AND CHURCHYARD WALL TO CHURCH OF ST NECTAN
• Listed Building (II) 1146645: GALSWORTHY HEADSTONE APPROXIMATELY 2 METRES EAST OF CHURCH OF ST NECTAN

Other References/Statuses: none recorded

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• CHURCHYARD (Early Medieval to Modern - 1066 AD to 2013 AD)

Full description

Ordnance Survey, 1880-1899, First Edition Ordnance 25 inch map (Cartographic). SDV336179.

Grave Yard marked. Map object based on this source.

Walls, S., 2011, Archaeological Watching Brief During the Excavations for a Water Pipe, Electricity Cable and Drainage for St Nectan's Church, Stoke, Hartland (Report - Watching Brief). SDV348215.

An archaeological watching brief on the excavation of four trenches for the insertion of electricity cables and water pipes and drains across the churchyard into the church tower was undertaken in May 2011. Trenches 1 and 2 were around the south and side of the church respectively, trench 3 extended northwards from Trench 2 close to the north-west corner of the tower into the churchyard extension. Trench 4 was located within the church tower and extending under the west door to join the churchyard trenches. A cut feature (107) revealed in Trench 1 was probably for the lightning conductor which was contained within its fill (108) and a small corner of a large dressed angular stone seen in the northern section of the trench was probably part of the foundations for the south-west corner buttress of the tower. Buttress footings were also revealed in Trench 2 on the northern and western side of the tower. Substantial wall footings were also exposed in Trench 4 immediately below the concrete surface outside the church tower. The gap between these and the tower suggests that they were partially truncated when the south door was inserted or rebuilt. Alternatively they belong to an earlier tower. Two different stratigraphic sequences were seen in Trench 3 with those in the churchyard extension post-dating those in the churchyard thus corresponding with the former's 19th century creation. It also included a robber trench from the removal of the former churchyard boundary wall. The east facing section within the churchyard revealed seven Victorian grave cuts corresponding with surviving headstones to the west. No finds were recovered from Trench 1. A single fragment of post medieval floor tile, two 18th century clay pipe stems, an iron nail and a sherd of post 1720 white refined earthenware and rare fragments of human bone came from Trench 2. Trench 3 likewise had rare bone fragments and produced a similar array of post medieval finds including two iron nails, an 18th century clay pipe stem and 3 large sherds of an internally glazed red ware dating to the 19th century, presumably part of a floral tribute.

Ordnance Survey, 2013, MasterMap (Cartographic). SDV350786.

Comparison between this and the 1880s-1890s Ordnance Survey map shows that the churchyard has been extended to the north into the area of a former rookery. Map object based on this source.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV5616 - Archaeological Watching Brief at St Nectan's Church, Stoke

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