Hillfarrance Church History

Holy Cross Church

The Church is dedicated to the Holy Cross. The Chapel on the south side appears from an earlier inscription to have been erected in AD 1333, but some of the work seems later, built by William de Vernai Lord of the manor, whose family are buried here. It was made over to the parish in AD 1857 and seats 160. The pulpit is Hamdon hill stone, it was recorded that in 1611 there was a wooden Jacobean pulpit. The Church was restored in 1857 when it had a peal of 5 bells. An extract taken from ‘The Kings England – Somerset’ by Arthur Mee published in 1940 says “here hang four bells which rang in the first Stuart King”.

There are now 6 bells. The bells were restored in 1925 by the Church Bell Foundry, Whitehcapel Road, London. The Tower where the bells hand was added in the 13 th century. The will of the Rev. John Lane 1540 gives the period of the building of the tower. An item in the will read ‘to Hillfarrance to building tower 3s. 4p. In the parapet of the tower are a series of quarterfoils, some contain a monogram with the letters I.P.

We know that John Wesley preached in Hillfarrance, probably not in the Church but in a chapel outside the gates.

An entry in the New Grove Encyclopaedia of Music tells us that John Isaac Hawkins was definitely born at Hillfarrance on the 14 th March 1772. He is the inventor of the upright piano, we understand at the time he invented it he was living in Philadelphia.

There is a tombstone in the churchyard in memory of a John Isaac Hawkins who could be his father.

PAST INCUMBENTS

Thomas Warton	1782
John Banks Maulding	1790
Charles Jesse	1793
James Ford	1820
John King Eagles	1832
John Warre	1877
George Palmer	1881
David Payne Williams	1887
John Argyle Welch Collins	1892
Alleyne Fitzherbert Lye	1894
Edward Popham Spurway	1896
Charles Henry Chard	1900
William Adderly Campbell	1905
William Sweet Escott	1908
Algernon Edward Tollemache	1914
Henry Wheat MA	1930
Henry Rees Davies BA	1935
Albert George West	1958
William Henry Greening	1962
John Butler FBOA	1964
Kelvin George John Williams	1974
Neville Kent	1977
Kevin Gilbert Xavier Tingay	1990
Alison Norris	2002

Thomas Warton was a don at Trinity College Oxford and in 1757 was elected Professor of Poetry. In 1785 he was created Peot Laureate. Chalmers General Biographical Dictionary states that in 1782 he was presented by his college to the donative of Hillfarrance. In his biography there is no indication that he was active in Hillfarrance.

James Ford the draft V.C.H. says James Ford owned the ‘ Advowson’ and was curate between the years 1820 and 1830. It states that he dies on 31st January 1850 bequeathing £4000 to Trinity College, Oxford, for the purchase of the advowson on Hillfarrance and St. Laurence, Ipswich, and endowing the Ford Professorship of English History at Oxford. Trinity College thus obtained the patronage of Hillfarrance.

This seems odd as it is recorded that the College presented Thomas Warton in 1782 and therefore already possessed the advowson.

Harvest 2002