Church of St Augustine - Bell Tower - Locking, Weston-Super-Mare, UK.
N 51° 19.936 W 002° 54.883
30U E 505941 N 5686779
St Augustine's Church Bell Tower is the oldest part of the building, and has a ring of six bells. The Church has been the site of Christian worship for over 800 years. Located in Locking, Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset, Great Britain.
Waymark Code: WMMC0B
Location: South Wales, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 08/29/2014
Views: 3
St Augustine’s is an Anglican church, belonging to the Church of England, In the Dioceses of Bath & Wells. The Parish Church has been the site of Christian worship since 1370.
"The Parish Church of St Augustine dates from the 14th century and is a Grade II listed building. It stands on a hill above a valley by the Mendip Hills and has views towards the nearby coast. There has been a church here for over 800 years.
TOWER
The tower is a fine example of the towers for which Somerset is famous, and from the top one has a splendid view of the surrounding countryside It is the highest point in the Parish. It was built in 1380 and therefore is the oldest part of the outside Church fabric. The trefoil parapet which surmounts the tower had to be partly restored in 1965 and most recently in 2002.
BELLS
There are six bells in the tower, two of which were cast at Bridgwater. An old beam in the porch dated 1631 and taken from the belfry bares the name of John Plumley, Lord of the Manor. The old door on the inside of the stairs leading to the top of the tower is the original. One bell is inscribed "I to Church the living call and to the grave I summon all". The sixth bell was added to commemorate victory in the 2nd World War and appropriately called the 'Victory Bell'.
The first written mention of the church comes in 1217 in a charter concerning gifts by a wealthy resident of 'Lokyng' to canons of nearby Woodspring Priory. an Augustinian priory founded to commemorate Thomas à Becket. The Prior and Convent of Woodspring were patrons of the church until the priory's dissolution in 1536 during the Reformation in the reign of King Henry VIII.
Of the Norman church fabric the font is the sole remaining part. The font has carvings characteristic of Celtic art from the 11th century, and the figures at the corners are dressed in armour of the style of Richard I (1189–1199).The oldest part of the church visible today is the tower, which was built in 1380." Text source: (
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