Listed Building record MDR360 - St Peter's Church, Fairfield

SK 067 741: St. Peter's Church, Site of Medieval Chapel: 'A chapel, subordinate to the mother church of Hope, was erected here in the first half of the 13th century and stood until 1838 when the present St. Peter's was erected on the site.' (1, 2) It is probable that the old chapel that once stood on the site of the existing church was built between 1206 and 1255; it was certainly present in 1260 when the Dean and Chapter gave leave to William Gretton, Lord of Fairfield, to found a chantry 'in the Chapel there erected'. The chapel was closed between 1553 and 1558 as a result of the minister preaching the 'heretical faith'. The chapel was rebuilt in c. 1595 as it was in poor condition. It had a square tower at the west end, a plain pointed porch, a nave and a chancel. There was a charnel house to the north of the tower. The dimensions of the chapel were as follows: nave 47ft by 17ft 10ins, chancel 24ft 5ins by 13ft. In 1811 and 1815 the chapel was recorded as being in a poor condition, mainly due to a congregation numbering only half a dozen. A brief was obtained to rebuild the chapel, although this did not happen for another twenty years. In 1835 the chapel was described as 'a censure on the township' and it was finally demolished and rebuilt in 1839. Only a few relics, including the font, remain from the old chapel. Much of the stone went to repair Dakin Cottage which was extended at that time. (3)