Avenbury

Avenbury
Ruins of St Mary's Church, Avenbury
Avenbury is located in Herefordshire
Avenbury
Avenbury
Location within Herefordshire
Population225 (as stated on citypopulation.de)
OS grid referenceSO6653
Civil parish
  • Avenbury
District
  • Herefordshire
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
PoliceWest Mercia
FireHereford and Worcester
AmbulanceWest Midlands
List of places
UK
England
Herefordshire
52°10′32″N 2°29′47″W / 52.1755°N 2.49631°W / 52.1755; -2.49631

Avenbury is a civil parish in Herefordshire, England. It is on the A465, just south of Bromyard, and by the River Frome. The population of this parish at the 2011 Census was 225.[1]

History

Avenbury was mentioned on the Domesday Book.[2] The village that was centred on the church of St Mary has now disappeared leaving the parish consisting of a series of farms and hamlets.[3]

In the post-medieval period the village had a barn and several lime kilns as well as houses.[4]

Parish church

The church was founded ca. 840 AD but rebuilt in Norman times; the tower was built in the 13th century.[5] The church was closed in 1931.[6] Many of the Baskerville family are buried in the churchyard. Three of the bells were rehung in St Andrew by the Wardrobe, London, in 1933.[7]

In May 2007 the church, which had been acquired by a pagan[8] and artist named Leszek Skuriat in the 1970s was put up for sale and a trust created to buy it for preservation.[5][9] In June 2009 St Mary's church was bought by a local archaeologist.[10] In conjunction with English Heritage, restoration work on the church has commenced: St Mary's is a Grade II* listed building, a scheduled monument and is on the Heritage at Risk Register.[11]

References

  1. ^ "Civil Ward population 2011". Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  2. ^ "Bromyard History". Archived from the original on 26 November 2006. Retrieved 31 December 2007.
  3. ^ "Bromyard Historical Society". Retrieved 31 December 2007.
  4. ^ "Historic Herefordshire Online - Archaeological Records". Retrieved 31 December 2007.
  5. ^ a b Davidson, Jack (2 November 2007). "Lottery Cash to buy Historic Church". Ledbury Reporter. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  6. ^ "BBC - Closure Date". Retrieved 31 December 2007.
  7. ^ "Haunted London Richard Jones historic tours". Retrieved 31 December 2007.
  8. ^ "Church's pagan owner warned". Hereford Times. 24 January 2005. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  9. ^ Ferguson, Paul (10 September 2007). "Hope for derelict church". Hereford Times. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  10. ^ The Hereford Times; 2009/08/06
  11. ^ "Ruined Church of St Mary, Avenbury - Herefordshire, County of (UA)". Historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 18 November 2020.