Listed Building record MDO3559 - Church of St Mary, Lower Blandford St Mary

Parish Church, with a fourteenth century west tower, and fifteenth century chancel; south aisle and porch we built in 1837, with the north aisle and transept in 1862, finally the vestry was added in 1908.

THE PARISH CHURCH OF ST. MARY stands near the centre of the village in the W. part of the parish. In general the masonry is chequered flint and ashlar but the E. wall of the chancel is of banded flint and Greensand; the lower part of the tower is of Heathstone rubble alternating with courses of knapped flint; the quoins are heavy blocks of Greensand and Heathstone. The roofs are partly tiled and partly slated. The West Tower dates from the late 14th century; the Chancel is of the late 15th century but restored. The Nave has no early features. The church was restored and a N. aisle was added in 1711 by Governor Pitt, whose father had been rector, but Pitt's aisle disappeared in 1862 when the present North Aisle and North Transept were built. The South Aisle was built in 1837; originally two iron pillars took the place of the former S. wall of the nave but in 1919 stone columns and pointed arches were substituted. The South Porch was built in 1837 and restored in 1901; the Vestry was built in 1908. The wall monument to Francis Cartwright, the architect, is regarded as especially worthy of preservation by RCHM. <2,3>

St Mary's Church. Grade 2*. <4,5>

<1> Ordnance Survey, Ordnance Survey map 1:10,560, 1969 (Map). SDO18658.

(ST 89160527) Ch

<2> Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England), 1970, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume III (Central) Part 1, 40-41 (Monograph). SDO146.

<3> DOE (HHR), 1954, List of Buildings of Special Historic or Architectural Interest: Blandford Rural District (Scheduling record). SDO17701.

<4> DOE (HHR), List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest: North Dorset, 4 (Scheduling record). SDO17666.

Jun-1985

<5> Newman, J, and Pevsner, N, 1972, The Buildings of England: Dorset, 101 (Monograph). SWX1290.

<6> National Record of the Historic Environment, 205480 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Apr 15 2025 4:22PM