Church History

This page is a chronological history of verifiable events in the life of the church. The Appendix contains a link to a page with more general information relating to the church and how it has been interpreted.

1146 First Priest

The first priest identified so far was appointed in 1146: see details of Robert. The context the information concerning Robert suggests that he was not responsible for bringing Christianity to Deopham.

1380 The Oldest Bell

The oldest bell dates from around this year. For a full account of the bells, please see here. Provided that the bell was not brought here from somewhere else, this would suggest that the tower had been built by 1380.

1534 Separation from Rome

The separation from Rome is significant for Deopham church because it marked the beginning of the destruction of all the medieval imagery, lights, liturgy and chapels.

1559 The keeping of registers becomes mandatory

The keeping of registers became mandatory following the publication of Injunction X¹ by Queen Elizabeth I in 1559:-

Also, that the parson, vicar, or curate, and parishioners of every parish within this realm, shall in their churches and chapels keep one book or register, wherein they shall write the day and year of every wedding, christening, and burial made within their parish for their time, and so every man succeeding them likewise; and also therein shall write every person’s name that shall be so wedded, christened, and buried. And for the safe keeping of the same book, the parish shall be bound to provide of their common charges one sure coffer, with two locks and keys, whereof the one to remain with the parson, vicar, or curate, and the other with the wardens of every parish church or chapel, wherein the said book shall be laid up. Which book they shall every Sunday take forth, and in the presence of the said wardens, or one of them, write and record in the same all the weddings, christenings, and burials, made the whole week before; and that done, to lay up the book in the said coffer as before: and for every time that the same shall be omitted, the party that shall be in the fault thereof shall forfeit to the said church 3s. 4d., to be employed the one half to the poor men’s box of that parish, the other half towards the repairing of the church

1560 First Church Register

The earliest Church Register of Baptisms, Marriages and Burials dates from 1560.²

Although the registers have survived, they have become seriously damaged and are written in a difficult script:

1777 Glazing repairs

Repairs by Joseph Sayer, Glazier, Hingham:

Photo: G. Sankey

1851 Church School opened

Opening of the church school

The Churchman’s Companion of 1851, Volume 10, pages 250-252, reported:-

The village of Deopham, Norfolk, has long been known in its neighbourhood for its entire abandonment to Dissent of the lowest and most profligate kind. There has been no resident vicar within the memory of man, and only of late years a resident curate, and with no parsonage house, no school, no resident gentry, and the Church in sad repair — there seemed little prospect of any improvement ; we trust, however, that better days are now in store. The Rev. George H. Turner (late curate of S. Andrew’s, Holborn,) was last year presented to the living by the Dean and Chapter of Canterbury. Nothing could be more dreary than the appearance of the place on his arrival; but indefatigable zeal and self-devotion have quickly had their fruits. On Wednesday last an excellent and tastefully built school-room, with master’s house, close to the Church, was opened, while a parsonage house, near at hand, was seen rising high above the ground, and the internal arrangements of the Church, by a wonderful transformation, were found by experience to be well adapted for a solemn carrying out of the English ritual.

The full text of the opening service for the school can be read here:

School Opening

Survey of religion

In 1851 a national survey of all religious places of worship was undertaken. The results for Deopham are presented here.

1862 Repairs needed to tower

The vicar, the Rev. H. Wanklyn, wrote to the Dean & Chapter of Canterbury on March 14^th 1862 asking them to release funds previously promised for the school. He then went on to explain that his “energies must be directed towards the splendid tower, which is in a most critical state & will cost more that £250 to make fairly secure …”. He asks them for assistance.

1864 Chancel reroofed

In 1864 the chancel was reroofed and the east window restored; other repairs were carried out at the same time. An account of this project is available here.

1867 South aisle restoration

In 1867, the south aisle roof was restored. There is further information on this project here.

1878 Chancel Repairs

Minor repairs were carried out to the chancel in 1878 at the expense of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners. This is described here.

1882/3 Nave roof Restoration

The details of the 1882/3 restoration of the nave roof are explained here. This was a very substantial exercise which was carried out despite some controversy at the time.

1883 Nave Interior Restoration

The details of this project are explained here.

1883 Lead repair

Since the inscription on the lead below reads “High Wind”, this replacement must have been in addition to the nave and aisle roof restorations.

The inscription on this piece of lead retained inside the church reads:-

JT GIBSON &
FRED CANNELL
Kings Lynn.
Recast and laid this lead on this church Aug 1883
High wind

1883 North Aisle Restoration

The restoration of the north aisle largely took place at the same time as the nave roof restoration. There are notes on this project here.

1886 Chancel Roof repairs

In 1886 the chancel roof tiles were replaced because of problems with the roof leaking. The full details can be read here.

1888 North buttresses restored

The EDP of Jan 12th, 1888 reported:-

As sufficient funds have been raised to go on with the restoration of the church, the north aisle buttresses, which for want of means were left when the main part of the building was restored in a very ruinous condition, have been put in good order. The porch roof and walls are also under repair.

1890 Organ installed

The Nicholson organ was installed. A full description of the organ can be accessed here.

1894 Glazing repairs

Photo: G. Sankey

The following invoice corresponds to the engraving in the glass shown above.

1897 Diamond Jubilee

The Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria was officially celebrated on June 22^nd 1897 to mark the occasion of the 60^th anniversary of Queen Victoria’s accession on June 20^th 1837. Queen Victoria was the first British monarch ever to celebrate a Diamond Jubilee.

Photos: G. Sankey, Nov 2023

Deopham Church, having considered a number of alternatives, decided to mark this event by erecting panels in the chancel either side of the communion table containing the ten commandments, the Lord’s Prayer and the Apostles’ Creed.

On April 30^th 1897 the Rev. Treglown wrote to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners to obtain their permission to “place in the chancel of our church a permanent memorial to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee”; the Commissioners sanctioned the proposal and contributed £3 towards the cost.
These panels have subsequently been removed to the back of the church.

1903 Fundraising for stoves

Fundraising for stoves.

1909 East window glazing damaged

In January 1909 the vicar, the Rev. J.S. Treglown, wrote to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners to explain that “a recent gale blew out a part of our Chancel East window between 3 & 4 feet long.” He enclosed a quote from Mr. Greenwood for fixing the problem, and the Commissioners agreed to fund it. The invoice below corresponds to the quote:

1913 Extension of the churchyard

On September 13^th 1913 the Rev. J.S. Treglown wrote to the Ecclesiastical Commissioners:

I should like to draw your attention to …
A request that I have made twice before in past years that you would kindly give a piece of land from the meadow (your property) at the east of the Church yard to enlarge the church yard which is more than full. Each time I have asked the only reply I get is “Your letter shall receive attention”. We should be grateful of some definite reply. The Church yard must have been buried over & over again many times in the hundreds of years it has been used, you can dig nowhere without throwing up bones.

Clearly this appeal was successful because on December 31^st 1913 the Bishop of Norwich consecrated an extension eastwards to the churchyard. The Rev. J.S. Treglown was the vicar with Messrs W.C. Allen & F. Price being the churchwardens at the time. This event is recorded in the Parish Register.

1917 Chancel Window repairs

On December 3^rd 1917 the vicar, the Rev. J.S. Treglown, reported that “high winds have blown in a part of one of the windows”. Messrs Cornish & Gaymer investigated in January 1918 and repaired the damage. They charged £12:8:6d which was paid by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners.

1923 Chancel Glazing repair

1923 Repairs to tower

The following image is held in the Lambeth Palace Archive and is clearly dated January 22^nd 1923 showing church tower works in progress. The Rev. Harold Gray subsequently used this photograph for his Christmas card in 1957. The 1925 edition of Kelly’s Directory reported that the tower had been restored, a comment which had not appeared in the previous edition of 1916.

Image courtesy of Lambeth Palace Library

1934 Quotation for repairs to Nave Roof

In October 1934 William Gibson quoted £15 for repairs to the nave roof.

1938 Ordnance Survey ask to install triangulation point

On May 3rd 1938 the Ordnance Survey requested permission to install a triangulation point on the roof of the church tower.

1954 Estimates for repairs

On April 15th 1954 the architect, Mr. Upcher, set out costs for repairs to the church totalling £3,200 in a letter to Rev. H. Gray. It is interesting to note that the plan at this stage was to strip the lead from the roof and replace it with copper.

1956 Completion of repairs

An account dated Jan 2nd, 1956, lists the sums due for for work carried out by Messrs Taylor, Woods and Starlin. The total sum due was £1,147 plus the architect’s fees plus a £5 supplement from the scaffolders.

1961 The first Quinquennial

In 1952 the Church Assembly endorsed a report stating that

a nation-wide appeal should be started to make good the enforced postponement of church repairs during the war years, and
all churches should be inspected by a qualified architect every five years.

Not rushing into anything, the first inspection of Deopham church took place in 1961, the summary of which is available here. The architect, Mr. Upsher, recommended that works to the value of £1,210 were needed, not including the bell frame. This would be equivalent to approximately £22,000 in 2023 according to the Bank of England’s Inflation Calculator³.

1961 Electricity arrives

On June 8th 1961 a faculty (planning application) was authorised by the diocese to connect electricity to the church and to install electric lights making use of the existing oil lamp fittings.

1974 Choir stalls and pulpit replaced

Following the closure of St Martin at Palace in Norwich (situated just opposite the bishop’s palace), their pulpit and choir stalls were moved to Deopham. The previous Deopham choir stalls were moved to the west end. These two photos from 1938 show the Deopham pulpit and choir stalls in their previous setting.
The decision to acquire the altar and pulpit is recorded in the Deopham P.C.C. minutes of November 5^th 1974. The decision concerning the choir stalls was made at a specially convened sub-committee meeting on November 17th 1974.

In the same year, the main altar was replaced by one from the Church of St Peter, Lowestoft, which had also been declared redundant. The decision to acquire this altar is recorded in the Deopham P.C.C. minutes of November 5^th 1974.

The photograph shows St. Peter’s church Lowestoft before it was closed with the altar now located in St. Andrew’s Deopham:

Photo: http://www.suffolkchurches.co.uk/lowespeter.html

2018 Electrics replaced

In 2018 all the electrical wiring was replaced and new wall mounted heaters installed.

Incumbents and Curates of Deopham church

Click on those names that are underlined to see information about them.

Years Incumbent in Office	Incumbent’s Name	Years Curate in Office	Curate’s Name	Patronage	Comments
1146	Robert				the first vicar of Deopham (according to Francis Blomefield)
1227	Ralf
1319	William de Tatersete			The Prior and Chapter of Canterbury
1349	Thomas Taylour
1368	Thomas Patrickswyk				Moved to East-Tilbury
1371	Richard Pullyng
?	John Greenhill				Moved to Takele, London
1398	Will. de Alfeston
1399	Nicolas Fuller				Move to Floketon
1413	Walter Hert				Moved to Epworth chantry
1423	John Prys				Moved to Berford
1438-1461	William Bedwell				Died 1463 having resigned in 1461
1461	John Bownde
1468	Brother John Unkar				An Austin-friar
1482	Robert Hareward				Died in post
1504-1511	Walter Barnard				Died in post; lapse afterwards
1511-1512	Interregnum
1512	John Hole
1539	Peter Galt			The last to be presented by the Prior of Canterbury
1553	John Broughton				Broughton was Deprived of the vicarage. Mr Amyas, farmer of the rectory.
1554	Edm. Fuller				on Broughton’s deprivation. Lapse afterwards
1556	Stephen Long				John Flowerdew of Hethersett, was farmer of the rectory.
1565	John Godfrey				Ditto
1598	Mark Rame				Died in post. Nic Brook
1598	Edmund Payne				Died in post Thomas Cooper and William Beale were farmers of the rectory.
1642	Antony Cooper			Dean and Chapter of Canterbury
1657-1710	William Cullyer				Nic Bragg
		1711	Benjamin Gooch
1713-1728	Henry Rix			Dean and Chapter.	United to Colton; died in post
1729-1736	William Cory			A. B. Ditto.	Died in post
1736-1737	John Wells			Ditto
1737-1753	Robert Nunn			Dean and Chapter of Canterbury are patrons
		1740	William Evans
1753-1760	Robert Mawson				Not in Blomefield‘s list of incumbents.
		1754	John Buck
1760-1799	John Buck				Died in post
1799	Richard Adams				Died in post
		1802	James Layton
		1800-1801	Edward Trells
		1801-1804	John Colman
		1805-1812	John Howard
		1824	Robert Cremer
		1832-1833	William Corbould
		1833-1844	Andrew Warner
		1845-1850	Henry Spencer
1850	George Turner
1861-1895	Hibbert Wanklyn
		1872-1873	F.C. Hingeston-Randolph		Rector of Ringmore in Devon
		1884-1892	Jacob Porter
		1892-1894	V.R. Bomford
		1894-1895	J. Pearce Warner
1895	John Samuel Treglown
1930	William Clark
1939	Harold Gray
1960	Stephen Freshwater				Priest in Charge
1960	Arthur Castle
1965	Inter regnum
1966	Brian Henharen				Priest in Charge
1970	Kenneth Dobson				Priest in Charge
1974	Francis Hall				Priest in Charge
1976	Eric Buck				Priest in Charge
1979	Tom Callender				Priest in Charge
1983	Earnest Wilks
1989	James Hall
1994	Peter Stephens
2005	Mark Kichenside
2011-2021	Colin Reed
2021	Inter regnum

Appendices

Descriptions of the Church

Several published descriptions of the church are available here; these contain more general views about the age and style of the building.

Descriptions

Church Photos

Photographs of the church are available by pressing this button:

Church Photos

Church Guides

Copies of recent church guides are available by pressing this button:

Church Guides

Church Screens

An examination of the pieces of church screens can be accessed here:

Church Screens

The Organ

A description of the organ and its background can be read by pressing this button:

The organ

The Bells

A description of the bells and their background can be read by pressing this button:

the bells

Guilds

The Guilds were an important aspect of medieval church life; there is further information on the following page:

Guilds

Sunday School

Footnotes

There is a full list of the injunctions here:
https://history.hanover.edu/texts/engref/er78.html ↩︎
The registers dating back to 1560 are held in the Norfolk Record Office,
Ref NRO PD 485/1, and on microfilm Ref MF/RO 318.
Many of the registers have been transcribed and are available on this site at: deophamhistory.co.uk/baptisms-marriages-and-burials/ ↩︎
Bank of England Inflation Calculator:
https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/monetary-policy/inflation/inflation-calculator ↩︎

Date	Change
15/4/24	1923 tower repair photo
13/3/24	Link to 1886 chancel repairs
26/2/24	Links to 1882/3 restorations; link to Rev. Anthony Cooper
11/2/24	Link to details of 1867 south aisle roof restoration
31/1/24	1878 chancel repairs
19/12/23	Sunday School; link to 1864 project
30/11/23	Link to Rev. John Wells
29/11/23	Howes glazing invoice of 1894; 1897 Diamond Jubilee; 1913 churchyard extension
5/11/23	Comment on missing pews + 1862 tower problem
2/11/23	Link to Bomford
29/10/23	Acquisition of altar from Lowestoft
27/10/23	Updated Churchman’s Companion reference
16/10/23	Curates Porter, Bomford & Warner
8/10/23	Stephen Freshwater in list of incumbents
30/9/23	1952 tower repairs
25/9/23	Curacy of F.C. Hingeston-Randolph
1/9/23	Cover and first pages from Register of 1560
19/8/23	Interregnum link
16/8/23	1934 quote, 15/4/1954 estimate and 2/1/1956 account
19/7/23	1894 glazing repairs
10/7/23	Added Edward Trells to list of curates
3/7/23	First quinquennial
19/6/23	Added link to page on Ordnance Survey triangulation
16/6/23	Reformatted to include only verifiable events; more general information is now available on linked pages. Added link to page on Guilds.
13/6/23	Added extension of the churchyard, 1913
8/6/23	Added Church Descriptions button
30/5/23	John Buck was curate before being vicar
29/5/23	Added links to Rev. William Layton, Rev. William Cory & Rev. William Corbould Added John Howard and John Colman to list of Curates Reformatted table of Incumbents & Curates with separate column for curate dates.
30/8/22	Published