St James Church History

The earliest parts of the standing structure are the arches of the nave arcade which, together with the west door, were built in the 1100's, though the door also shows traces of an earlier Norman style. Sometime in the second quarter of the 1300's a disaster occurred, very possibly a fire, which required a major rebuild of the tower and the arcade pillars. During the rebuilding the aisles were doubled in width, possibly with a second arcade, giving the church a total width equal to that of the transepts. It seems likely that the beautiful combination of triforium and clerestory above the nave arcade was built at this time.

In 1718 - 1720 the aisles were taken down and rebuilt as we see them today, the nave was walled off from the transepts and the pitch of the roof was lowered transforming the nave into an 18th Century preaching house. The chancel was only used once a month for the celebration of Holy Communion and the transepts were used for secular purposes. By the early 1800's these included a school in the south transept, where the election of the Mayor of Grimsby also took place, while the town's fire-engine was kept in an enclosure railed off on the west side of the north transept, beneath the blocked-in window.

Recent excavations in the churchyard (spring 1997) have revealed much that was unknown—and unsuspected—about Grimsby Parish church.

First mentioned in a document dated 1114, the church has stood on this site for almost 900 years, and was probably built on the site of an earlier place of worship.

The oldest part of the building is undoubtedly the west end; in the middle of the 13th century the arcades were constructed. About 1347, it is thought, the tower caught fire and collapsed. The pillars in the nave were damaged as a result and had to be replaced. The base of the 14th century font is probably constructed from a fragment of these earlier pillars. The tower was rebuilt in 1365, as evidenced by the inscription on the north east pier. Until recently it was thought that the church had been widened about this time, but it now seems likely that the opposite was in fact the case, and we have a building substantially smaller than the original.

The transepts and the crossing under the tower were turned over to secular use: the latter being used as a hall for mayoral elections. The south transept was used as a day school and the north transept was home to the town’s fire engine! In 1858 a major restoration was begun which was to continue for over fifty years under successive vicars. It began with the opening up of the nave. The reconstruction of the chancel, which had been damaged early in the 17th century took place in 1882-1884. In 1902 the Lady Chapel was added, and the aisles restored (including the insertion of the present windows) in 1908-1910 The Chapel of the Resurrection—the War Memorial Chapel—was added in 1920. The spaciousness evident today is part of a major refurbishment begun in 1996 as a result of the vision of the present rector. The new stone floor is heated from below, and this, with new lighting and other improvements, has completely transformed the building.