Description

TOWN OF DONCASTER ST SEPULCHRE GATE (WEST)
SE 50 SE (west side)

3/101 Church of St James
12.6.50

GV II

Church. 1858 designed by G G Scott in conjunction with Lord Grimthorpe, (then
Sir Edmund Beckett Denison, whose father was chairman of shareholders of Great
Northern Railway for whom it was built). Bellcote raised in 1860. Geometric
style. Ancaster stone and plain tile roofs with crested ridge tiles. Two
parallel ranges running north-south of nave and chancel with eastern porch
and central tower to south. Deep moulded plinth throughout, offset buttresses
between all bays, those to north end gableted, and continuous sill band.
East elevation has steeply pitched gabled porch to south with moulded pointed
arch, roll moulded soffit on attached shafts with moulded capitals, all below
hoodmould with head stops. Above in gable is a carved trefoil motif in moulded
circular surround. Stone coped gable with ridge cross. Twin cusped lancets
to sides of porch, Interior of porch has triple chamfered pointed doorcase,
outer arch on nookshafts, hood with foliage stops over and Caernarvon arches
with central columns in front of side windows. To left of porch is a trefoil
headed lancet with foliage stops to hoodmould. To right there are five tall
pointed, traceried 3-light windows with chamfered sills and continuous
hoodmoulds, broken only by buttresses. Moulded eaves brackets. North end
has twin gables, that to east with large 6-light pointed window in deep double
chamfered surround with elaborate tracery and hoodmould. Small quatrefoil
window in circular surround to top of gable. Western gable has blind arcade
of 5 trefoiled arches on attached shafts, below continuous hood. Above, a
large rose window and above again a similar quatrefoil window to that in eastern
gable. Stone copings on gableted kneelers, with ridge crosses. West elevation
similar to eastern one but with 6 windows and with small advanced pointed
doorcase into chancel to north. South elevation, twin gabled, as north elevation
but with bell turret between the gables and a lean-to vestry against the western
gable. Vestry has pointed east door and 4 four-centred arched windows with
hoodmoulds to south. Above similar blind arcade as that to north but with
taller, wider central arch housing pointed 2-light traceried window. Small
quatrefoil window to top of gable and stone copings on gableted kneelers.
East gable has large traceried 5-light pointed window with hoodmould and
small trefoil window to top of gable, also stone copings with ridge cross.
All nave and chancel windows with Geometric tracery. Tower has set back
buttresses to square base and trefoil headed lancet in pointed surround with
hoodmoulded to south side. Corners taper in above this to octagonal bell
stage with louvred trefoil headed openings in elaborate surrounds of four
orders, arches sitting on thin colonnettes with foliage capitals. Continuous
hoodmould with large carved stops. Ballflower cornice with corner gargoyles
above. Spire with bands of blind quatrefoils. Interior has central 6 bay
arcade with double chamfered arches on columns with foliage capitals and con-
tinuous hoodmould with foliage stops, except for a compound pier between fourth
and fifth bays, a compound respond to northern bay and an octagonal respond
to southern bay. The compound pier has wall shafts rising to support large
arched braced trusses, to both sides which define the chancels. Roofs otherwise
have scissor trusses. North windows have inner arches on colonnettes, and
hoodmoulds. Eastern nave has double chamfered priests door to bay 5, large organ
to north end and tall double chamfered pointed arch on octagonal responds
with hoodmould to south end supporting the bell turret. Trefoil headed lancet
to side. Chancel has 1875 carved oak reredos with blind arcading. Western
nave has octagonal pulpit and circular stone font on granite colonnettes.

Listing NGR: SE5720702811

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Church of St James at Wikipedia
• Wikidata Q26487703

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Kent: West and the Weald: The Buildings of England (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Central Leinster: Kildare, Laois and Offaly (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Ireland)
• 
  Hampshire: Winchester and the North (The Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Oxfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Northumberland (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Sussex: West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)