St. Michael's Kirche, Stockton

The church of ST. MICHAEL stands in a small churchyard on the south side of the village. It consists of chancel, nave, north and south aisles, west tower, vestry, and north porch. Except for the 15th-century tower and the 14th-century south wall of the chancel the church is modern. The nave and north aisle were built in 1863, the south aisle in 1873, and the chancel was partly rebuilt in 1809.The east end of the chancel is built of squared and coursed brown sandstone with red sandstone dressings, the upper part being rebuilt and the east window renewed in 1809; there is a shield bearing this date above the window. The tracery window has a pointed arch of two splays with three trefoil lights and a hoodmould. The north side is partly covered by a modern vestry and has a modern plain tracery window of two trefoil lights. On the south side to the east there is a two-light window similar to the one on the north, and in the centre there is a narrow doorway of 14th century date with a pointed arch of one splay, with a 15th century square-headed window of two trefoil lights to the west. The south aisle, which has a lowpitched lead-covered roof, is built of squared and coursed limestone with bands of sandstone at the levels of the sills and springers of the window-heads. In the east wall is a two-light window, and on the south side four windows, similar to those to the chancel; and on the west wall is a single pointed trefoil light with a hood-mould. In the clearstory, which has a band of sandstone level with the centres of the windows, there are three circular lights. The nave roof is tiled. The north aisle and clearstory have bands of sandstone as on the south. There are three windows, all alike with two ogee trefoil lights with pointed arches and hoodmoulds, two east of the porch and the other west. The west end has a single pointed trefoil light, and the clearstory three lights, as on the south. The porch has a pointed stone vaulted roof, stone benches, and small rectangular unglazed windows, one on either side. The entrance has a pointed arch with its mouldings continued down to splayed stops, and a hood-mould with return ends. The south doorway is similar but has a segmental-pointed head.The vestry is a continuation of the aisle but with a steep-pitched tiled roof. On the north it has an early 15th century window similar to the one in the south side of the chancel, but with a low-side window under its sill, the sill forming its head, evidently removed from the north wall of the chancel; the low-side window appears to have been reduced in height to suit its new position. On the east there is a window similar to those in the south aisle.The tower, which has a plinth of one splay, is in three stages and built of brown sandstone ashlar to half-way up the first stage, and above of red sandstone ashlar in large blocks, each stage being diminished slightly by weathered offsets. There are buttresses rising in four stages at each corner, those on the west being diagonal, and the tower is finished with an embattled parapet resting on a hollow moulding with gargoyles in the centre, flanked by human heads in the hollow of the moulding, and with similar heads at each of the angles. In each merlon there is a shield, and at the angles pinnacles with trefoil panels and crocketed finials. On the west in the lower stage there is a tracery window in a deep splay, of two trefoil lights with a pointed arch; the tracery and mullions are modern, the arch original. On the south are two loop-lights one each in the first and second stages and a small rectangular window in the second stage. The belfry windows on all four faces are two-light, of two splayed orders, with transoms and four-centred arches, the upper lights trefoiled and the lower cinquefoil, except on the east which has all trefoil lights. On the north there is a clock in the second stage.
The chancel (27 ft. 4 in. by 16 ft.) has a modern tiled floor with two steps to the altar, a modern hammerbeam roof, and plastered walls. The modern windows have pointed rear-arches and the south door a segmental. The door to the vestry has a pointed arch and adjoining it on the west there is an arch resting on moulded corbels, under which the organ is placed. On the south wall there is a white marble monument to Ellen Pilkington, died 1689.
The nave (53 ft. by 16 ft. 1 in.) has a tiled floor and an open collar-beam roof. The clearstory windows have wide splayed recesses with stop-chamfered pointed rear-arches. The north and south arcades are each of four bays with pointed arches of two splayed orders, the outer one hollow, resting on octagonal pillars with moulded capitals and bases and half-octagon responds at the ends. The font is placed near the west pillar of the north arcade and is modern, on a 14th-century base and probably a copy of the original basin. It is octagonal with moulded trefoil panels on each face and floriated crosses on each of the angles, resting on floriated stops and carried down by a fluted splay to a circular stem having a moulded capital and base. The oak pulpit, placed to the north of the chancel arch, is modern. The chancel arch is pointed, of two splayed orders, with moulded capitals but no visible bases; the responds repeat the arch orders. The tower arch has two splays on the nave side and three on the tower side, the inner resting on moulded capitals, the outer continued down to the floor and on the tower side they die out on the walls of the tower.The north aisle (47 ft. by 11 ft.) is paved with stone and has a lean-to roof with wall brackets on stone corbels. At the east end there is a pointed arched opening to the vestry, of two splayed orders, resting on short shafts with moulded capitals and bases. The windows have pointed rear-arches, stop-chamfered, and the south door a segmental one.The south aisle (47 ft. 10 in. by 11 ft.) is similar to the south but has a mutilated 14th-century piscina built very low into the south wall near the east wall. It has a moulded ogee head with a trefoil traceried panel at the back of the recess; the projecting basin has been broken off.The tower is stone-paved and in the south-west corner the angle is splayed for the tower stair, the doorway of which has a moulded four-centred head with the moulding carried down to stop on a splayed threshold. Below the west window, which has a pointed rear-arch, there is a blocked door opening with a chamfered segmental head which is not visible externally.There are three bells: one by Newcombe of Leicester, 1608, the other two by Hugh Watts, 1620 and 1622.The plate includes a silver chalice and two plated dishes of 1805.