Welcome

St Clements is a beautiful and imposing Marshland church, and has been at the centre of Grainthorpe village life for 800 years.  The Grade 1 listed building is stone built with rendering and has evolved through the ages, but still retains many of its original medieval features.   There are elements of the decorated and perpendicular styles and the church consists of a fine embattled tower, nave of four bays with clerestory and wide aisles, north door, south porch and chancel.  The clawed feet at the base of the columns and the responds in the north arcade can be dated back to the 12th or 13th century; the church was remodelled in the 14th and 15th centuries when the tower and clerestory were added.  There are magnificent views from the tower looking out to sea which would have been nearer at the time the church was built and when Grainthorpe was an important port.

The interior of the church has been remodelled a number of times over the years and in 1665 the South Porch was restored; the date is carved in the wonderful old timbers. During the 17th century box pews were built in the main body of the church and there is a plan of where the village families sat during services.   In 1876 Fowler of Louth remodelled the chancel after the old one had collapsed; an old postcard exists showing how it looked.  In 1909 the box pews were removed and replaced with free standing pews, made by Mr Doe a carpenter from Grainthorpe.   We are grateful to our forebears that this work was carried out as we are now able to move the pews to create a huge open space perfect for our annual Festival of Art and other cultural events.   The chancel was again “modernised” in 1953, and the only Victorian feature left is the tiled floor in the chancel, which was until recently covered in carpet and only rediscovered last year – it is now once again appreciated – amazing how fashions change!

The Memorial Organ Appeal

It was decided that it would be a good idea to undertake the much needed restoration work to the Memorial Organ in St Clements while the building work was going on, and to this end the “Sponsor a Pipe” appeal was launched in January 2017.  There has been a wonderful response to this, but the PCC still has a good deal of fundraising to do before the target is reached.  The organ was installed in 1951, paid for by the community of Grainthorpe, and dedicated as a memorial to the four Grainthorpe men who lost their lives during WW11.  If you, or someone you know, has a connection with Grainthorpe and would like to sponsor a pipe, then please contact Richard Drinkel on 01472 388825 or r-ma@ canalfarmcottages.co.uk