St John’s Church, Duxford 1947 (photo G H S Bushnell) (Cambridgeshire Collection)

St John, Duxford

History of St John's Church

This church has not been used as a place of worship since the 1870s. It has been managed by The Churches Conservation Trust since 1979 who produce an excellent illustrated guide available at the church. Other churches managed by the The Churches Conservation Trust are St Peter, and All Saints, Cambridge.

Listed Building

Parish Church, now a redundant church. Late C12 tower, nave and chancel. C13 tower heightened and chancel lengthened. Chapel of two bays added to north side of chancel c.1330, late C14 window added to ground stage of tower and west end of nave. Late C15 north aisle, and arcade, arches to tower and north chapel and C15 window to nave, and chancel; C15 porch, C16 east window. C18 repairs in brick. Restoration of tower and wall paintings 1985. … The unification of St John’s Parish Church with St Peter’s was discussed in 1650 and completed finally in 1874, the Church became derelict and is now in the care of the Redundant Church Fund. The north chapel was used as a school room from the mid C17 to c.1847.

1100 Core of nave, tower and chancel built

The wall paintings of the church date from the C12th and C13th.

1200 new windows in chancel

1280 belfry of tower

1340 north chapel built

1140 north aisle, porch and new windows in the nave.

1897 top of spire became twisted when a flag pole attached was hit by a gale at the time of Queen Victoria’s Jubilee.

Arthur Mee described the church with its churchyard surrounds as ‘enthroned like a ship at high tide.’

These are two saints, St Erasmus (left) and St Leonard (right). The mitres are used to denote their sainthood.

This painting shows a wheel, a griddle and other medieval implements. It could be part of a painting of ‘Christ of the Trades’ suggesting that there was an altar dedicated to a Trade Guild nearby.

At the apex of the tower is a central roundel copntaining the Lamb of God.

In 1947 there was actually a proposal to demolish the church as it was in an advanced state of decay.