Name: St Peter's Church, Barton-upon-Humber
Rating: 5.0

St Peter's Church, Barton-upon-Humber

Saint Mary's Lane, Barton-upon-Humber, North Lincolnshire DN18 5EX, UK

1-99 Years

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Description

St Peter's Church, Barton-upon-Humber the oldest parts of St Peter’s church, its striking Anglo-Saxon tower and baptistery, were built in the early 11th century. Look out for the tower’s characteristically Saxon triangular-headed windows and decoration with thin stone strips.

After being declared redundant in 1972, the church and its churchyard were comprehensively excavated. The remains of nearly 3,000 people were found, along with perfectly preserved medieval coffins. They span the thousand years between Anglo-Saxon and Victorian times. The Buried Lives display brings research on the bodies to life. Trace the impact of historic diseases, diet and surgery, uncover family tragedies, see mysterious objects buried with bodies.

Price starts from £5.90 for Adults, £3.60 for Children(5-17 yrs) and £9.50 for Family 1 Adult. If you are looking for Best place for day out with kids and families then this is the perfect destination offering fun, adventure, and unforgettable memories for everyone.

Features

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Host birthday parties: No

Features

History of St Peter’s Church: St Peter’s, Barton-upon-Humber, is one of the most thoroughly studied churches in England. Its history can be traced over more than 1,000 years in the building and in the excavated finds displayed inside.
The Saxon Church: In a prime position on the east coast, beside the Humber, Saxon Barton was wide open to Viking raiders, traders and settlers. The settlers, originally pagan, soon adopted Christianity, helping to fuel a great boom in church building of which St Peter’s was a part.
The first Christian use of this site was in the late 9th century. The stone church visible today was first built in about 970, comprising a tall tower flanked by a baptistery and a chancel. It has distinctive Saxon features, such as the use of large stones for doors and windows and a series of vertical stone strips around the tower – a technique derived from timber-framed buildings, but here largely decorative.
Some of the stone was reused from Roman buildings and was probably transported by river from Yorkshire.
There was room here for only a small congregation. The church was probably built to serve a major residence to the east, which was a forerunner of the present manor house.
Norman and Medieval Additions: Domesday Book records in 1086 a flourishing market town at Barton with its own church, presumably a reference to St Peter’s.
About this time the tower was heightened with a new belfry. This survives, but a large new Norman nave and chancel, revealed by excavations, were soon swept away by further rebuilding. First the nave was widened with aisles, and over the next four centuries, the chancel, aisles and entrance porches were all rebuilt, sometimes more than once, on an ever larger scale.
The various phases of building are evident in the different materials and styles of Gothic architecture. Notable features include the rare, early-14th-century Crucifixion window above a side altar and a series of carved portrait heads, grotesques and ‘Green Men’ among lush foliage.
By the mid-16th century St Peter’s had grown to six times the size of the original Saxon church, while nearby St Mary’s (which was officially a chapel under St Peter’s) matched it in size and in splendour.
During the course of all these changes – which also included restorations in the Victorian era – the original tower survived intact.
In 1819 this was the first building in England to be identified as Anglo-Saxon, by Thomas Rickman, the historian who defined the various styles of Saxon, Norman and Gothic architecture.
St Peter's Church Today: Modern Barton could not sustain two large churches and St Peter’s became redundant in 1972, passing into the care of the state in 1978.
Displays inside show the results of excavation and research undertaken here since then. Skeletal remains from 2,800 burials (about a quarter of those estimated to lie here) have yielded important information on early medical practice, as well as the history of diseases such as arthritis.
Conservation here is a continuous process. In 1999 the eight bells were restored in time to ring in the millennium, echoing those that were first rung in this tower more than 1,000 years before.
Exhibition: There is a permanent exhibition situated within the church containing artefacts that were dug up during excavations that took place in the 70s and 80s.

Facilities

Parking: Limited parking in adjacent streets.
Food And Drink: There are no catering facilities on site, however there are a number of restaurants, cafes and pubs in Barton.
Toilets: There is one unisex and disabled toilet located within the church.
Dogs: Dogs on leads are welcome in the grounds only, not in the church. Please note that dogs need to be supervised at all times on a lead and should not be left tied up.

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Price

Price: Paid

Price Details

Adult: From £5.90.
Child: From £3.60.
Under 5s: Free.
Senior: from £5.
Student: From £5.
Family (1 Adult): From £9.50.
Family (2 Adults): From £15.40.

Pricing URL: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/st-peters-church-barton-upon-humber/prices-and-opening-times/

Birthday Parties

Offer Birthday Parties: No

This site will be open on 26 October 2025 between 10am - 3pm.

Address: Saint Mary's Lane, Barton-upon-Humber, North Lincolnshire DN18 5EX, UK

Post Code: DN18 5EX

Council: North Lincolnshire

County: Lincolnshire

Road Access: Off Beck Hill, near Barton-on-Humer town centre. Barton is at the south (Lincolnshire) end of the Humber Bridge.
Bus Access: Stagecoach in Lincolnshire services 260, 350, 360, 450 and Humber Flyer; Stagecoach/East Yorkshire Humber Fast Cat service 350 also passes close by.
Train Access: Barton-on-Humber station is ½ mile away.
Bicycle Access: Find your cycling route to St Peter’s Church Barton-upon-Humber at sustrans.org.uk, the National Cycle Network.
Parking: Limited parking in adjacent streets.