The Two Churches at Alvingham
Notably, Alvingham has two churches in the same churchyard, one dedicated to St. Mary, the other the only church in England to be dedicated to St. Adelwold. Although Alvingham is not unique to England in having two churches in one churchyard, it is quite unusual.
St Adelwold's Alvingham
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St Adelwold's, the parish church of Alvingham has the large stately tower. Though the present church of St. Adelwold's dates back to 1131 (Davies, 2001) it was built on the foundations of an earlier Saxon Church with the same dedication (Esling, 1972). Find out more about St Adelwold's Church on the National Churches Trust website.
Saint Mary's North Cockerington
St Mary's, with its stubby tower (in the background), was the parish church of North Cockerington and is believed to have been founded in the first half of the 12th century. The actual date is not known for certain. There remains in the chancel north wall, a small Saxon window with a little moulding in the head stone.
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This church is no longer used for regular services and is in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust (CCT). Find out more about St Mary's on the CCT website. The church is open permanently and this has the effect of reducing vandalism. The image shown, extracted from Davies, 2001, is thought to have been taken in the late 1800s.
In St Mary's, there is a small stained glass installation by the artist Derek Hunt which is fixed to the original windows in the north aisle of the church. It incorporates a poem by the Lincolnshire Poet Laureate Joel Stickley which describes St Mary (in rather poetical terms) and there are references to the other churches that form part of a tour of the Archway project.
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Further informatlon about the Churches
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