Todwick - St. Peter & St. Paul

A general view of the church of St. Peter and St. Paul in Todwick

The village of Todwick is the next stop on my investigation of the mediaeval parish churches that are set on the outcrop of the Rotherham Red sandstone – and which can be easily investigated on the No. 74 bus route that runs from Treeton to Harthill.

A geological map of the area around Todwick

Unlike the village of Harthill, the Rotherham Red sandstone around Todwick forms a gently undulating landscape, partially covered in glacial till and with no escarpments that would obviously be exploited by quarrying; however, on rising ground immediately to the south of St. Peter & St.Paul's church, a plantation may cover former quarry workings.

Sandstone and limestone in an old agricultural building

Apart from the church and manor house, a handful of other historic buildings are found half a mile to the north and which are essentially constructed of Rotherham Red sandstone, with some old barns using both sandstone and dolomitic limestone.

An Anglo-Saxon/Norman north door to the nave

St. Peter and St. Paul's church is a simple structure comprising an 11th century coursed rubble sandstone aisleless nave, with a 14th century chancel and porch – both in squared dolomitic limestone – and a 15th century tower, which is constructed in mottled red/yellow sandstone that is very similar to the one seen in the tower at All Hallows, Harthill.

Mottled Rotherham Red sandstone to the tower

With the exception of the original dolomitic limestone mullions to the belfry windows, which are virtually identical in style to All Hallows, all of the dressings are built in the same stone as the walls; however, there is no consistency in the stone used for later restoration and repairs.

Repairs and restoration to the west elevation of the tower

The masonry to the exterior of the nave was once covered in thick layers of lime wash or lime plaster and this is still seen in the interior, although - in 1969 - this was removed from the Norman sandstone chancel arch, and presumably the other dressings, to reveal its rubble core.

The chancel arch