Church of St John the Baptist

CHURCH OF ST JOHN THE BAPTIST, MAIN STREET

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Overview

Heritage Category:
Listed Building
Grade:
II
List Entry Number:
1371598
Date first listed:
14-Dec-1987
List Entry Name:
Church of St John the Baptist
Statutory Address:
CHURCH OF ST JOHN THE BAPTIST, MAIN STREET
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Date:
2001-08-17
Reference:
IOE01/05263/04
Rights:
© Mr Alistair F Nisbet. Source: Historic England Archive

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Official list entry

Heritage Category:
Listed Building
Grade:
II
List Entry Number:
1371598
Date first listed:
14-Dec-1987
List Entry Name:
Church of St John the Baptist
Statutory Address 1:
CHURCH OF ST JOHN THE BAPTIST, MAIN STREET

The scope of legal protection for listed buildings

This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.

Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.

For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.

Understanding list entries

Corrections and minor amendments

The scope of legal protection for listed buildings

This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.

Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.

For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.

Understanding list entries

Corrections and minor amendments

Location

Statutory Address:
CHURCH OF ST JOHN THE BAPTIST, MAIN STREET

The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.

District:
West Northamptonshire (Unitary Authority)
Parish:
Abthorpe
National Grid Reference:
SP 64942 46516

Details

ABTHORPE MAIN STREET SP6446 (East side) 14/6 Church of St. John the Baptist

GV II

Church. Rebuilt 1870-1 by Ewan Christian incorporating some of the medieval structure. Coursed squared limestone and ironstone with limestone dressings and slate roofs with ornamental ridge tiles. Chancel, vestry, nave, north and south aisles, south porch and north-west tower. 2-bay chancel has 3-light Decorated style east window with hood mould; quatrefoil window in stone-coped gable above. Vestry to north with one-light east window with pointed trefoil head and single lancet window to north. Aisles overlap chancel. Nave and aisles are under one roof. North aisle has 3-light window to north with reticulated tracery whose head is in a gable, flanked by smaller 2-light Decorated style windows, another similar window further west, all with hood moulds. South aisle has similar composition to south and 2-light east window with quatrefoil in head. South porch has double-chamfered doorway with hood mould, one-light windows east and west with cusped heads and stone-coped gable with kneelers. South door within has quadrant moulding and hollow chamfer and hood mould. West front has 3-light Decorated style window, flanked by 2-light windows with quatrefoils to heads, all with hood moulds and low offset buttresses either side of central window. 2-stage north-west tower has polygonal stair turret projection to south-west with small rectangular chamfered windows lighting stair, quatrefoil windows at top and ridged stone roof. Doorway to north with semi-circular responds, moulded capitals and wave-moulded arch. North door within, similar to south door. 2-light bell-openings with quatrefoils in heads and hood moulds, corbel table, spire with one tier of lucarnes and pyramidal corner pinnacles. Interior: chancel has a piscina to north with cusped ogee head, another to south with pointed-arched head, both probably medieval and re-used. Nave has 4-bay arcades, medieval to north, with octagonal piers, moulded capitals and double-chamfered arches. C17 moulded octagonal font. C19 communion rail with fine wrought-iron supports. Stained glass east and west windows, that to east signed Mayer of Munich. Wall monument to Joseph Key d.1783 with incised slate inscription in stone surround. Incised slate wall monument to Reverend Richard Smith d.1778, another to Reverend John Jones d.1793. Incised slate wall monument in stone surround recording parish charities and their donors erected 1737. (Buildings of England: Northamptonshire, p.75; Kelly's Directory for Northamptonshire, 1928).

Listing NGR: SP6494246516

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:
235024
Legacy System:
LBS

Sources

Books and journals
Pevsner, N, The Buildings of England: Northamptonshire, (1961), 75
Kellys Directory in Northamptonshire, (1928)

Legal

This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.

Ordnance survey map of Church of St John the Baptist

Map

This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 08-Jul-2026 at 16:31:57.

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© Crown copyright [and database rights] 2026. OS AC0000815036. Use of this mapping is subject to Terms and Conditions.

End of official list entry

All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.

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