St Mary's Church is a

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

parish church in

Frome Frome ( ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, on uneven high ground at the eastern end of the Mendip Hills and on the River Frome, south of Bath. The population of the parish was 28,559 in 2021. Frome was one of the largest tow ...

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

, England. It was built in 1862–1864 to the designs of C. E. Giles and is a

Grade II listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

History

St Mary's was built as a

chapel of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church architecture, church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently, generally due to trav ...

to the parish church of

St John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

, and in particular to serve the districts of Welshmill, Fromefield, Innox Hill and Spring Gardens. The church was built at the expense of an anonymous benefactor, and the required plot of land was donated by Sir Charles Mordaunt. Other sites for the church, including at Fromefield and Clink, had been suggested, but the chosen site was favoured as it was considered more accessible to all of the surrounding districts. The plans for the church were drawn up by C. E. Giles of

Taunton Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England. It is a market town and has a Minster (church), minster church. Its population in 2011 was 64,621. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century priory, monastic foundation, owned by the ...

, which included an adjoining schoolroom and rectory. The corner stone was laid by the vicar of Frome, the Rev. William James Early Bennett, on 24 June 1862. The church was built by Messrs. Brown, with Mr. Tookey as clerk of the works. The carving work was carried out by Mr. Ezard of

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

and Mr J. W. Singer supplied the ironwork. St Mary's was consecrated by the

Bishop of Bath and Wells The Bishop of Bath and Wells heads the Church of England Diocese of Bath and Wells in the Province of Canterbury in England. The present diocese covers the overwhelmingly greater part of the (ceremonial) county of Somerset and a small area of D ...

, the Right Rev. Robert Eden, on 26 January 1864. In 1952, a large anchor was installed in the church as a hanging rood by Rev. T. Warrilow. The window east of the south porch had stained glass installed in memory of Tom Russell Warrilow in 1969.

Architecture

St Mary's is built of hammer-dressed and pointed local stone, with dressings in

Bath stone Bath Stone is an oolitic limestone comprising granular fragments of calcium carbonate originally obtained from the Middle Jurassic aged Great Oolite Group of the Combe Down and Bathampton Down Mines under Combe Down, Somerset, England. Its h ...

. It is made up of a

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

, organ chapel,

vestry A vestry was a committee for the local secular and ecclesiastical government of a parish in England, Wales and some English colony, English colonies. At their height, the vestries were the only form of local government in many places and spen ...

and south porch. Adjoining the church on its north side is a schoolroom and classroom, now used as the church hall, and adjoining the hall is the two-storey rectory. On the roof above the chancel arch is a bell turret, surmounted by an iron gilded cross, and the west gable also has a

bell-cot A bellcote, bell-cote or bell-cot is a small framework and shelter for one or more bells. Bellcotes are most common in church architecture but are also seen on institutions such as schools. The bellcote may be carried on brackets projecting from ...

for three bells. The chancel has a semi-octagonal form, with single-light windows by

Clayton and Bell Clayton and Bell was one of the most prolific and proficient British workshops of stained-glass windows during the latter half of the 19th century and early 20th century. The partners were John Richard Clayton (1827–1913) and Alfred Bell (1832� ...

. The nave is lighted by four two-light windows and the organ chapel is fronted by a two-light window. Horwood of Mells painted the glass of the single-light window over the font. The church's west end has two one-light windows, with a circular light in the gable. A small screen of Bath stone divides the chancel and nave, with columns of dressed red

Mansfield Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of the Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area and the second largest settlement in Nottinghamshire (following the city ...

stone. The altar space is laid with

Mintons Mintons was a major company in Staffordshire pottery, "Europe's leading ceramic factory during the Victorian era", an independent business from 1793 to 1968. It was a leader in ceramic design, working in a number of different ceramic bodies, ...

encaustic tiles, and the altar steps of polished limestone. The aisle is also laid with Mintons encaustic tiles and the flooring under the seating is of wood. The roof is of open stained timber. Original fittings from the 19th century include an octagonal stone pulpit, a brass lectern and a font with a central column supported by four marble shafts. The organ was built by Vowles of

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

. The carved

reredos A reredos ( , , ) is a large altarpiece, a screen, or decoration placed behind the altar in a Church (building), church. It often includes religious images. The term ''reredos'' may also be used for similar structures, if elaborate, in secular a ...

is made up of three panels, each divided by Devon marble columns, and surmounted by a cornice with a carved finial.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Mary's Church, Frome Churches in Somerset Church of England church buildings in Mendip District Grade II listed churches in Somerset Churches completed in 1864