Southwick.
Excavations were carried out at Southwick in 1996 and the results were published in a paper in Northamptonshire Archaeology.[2]Excavations of two closely connected sites produced evidence of thriving iron-smelting industry in the village in the 10th century. Amedieval stone hall dating from the mid-13th century, which may have been a manse owned by St Mary's Priory, Huntingdon, was subsequently converted into a kitchen and brewhouse before being relegated to use as an outbuilding for the 16th century Vicarage Farm. In the north-west of Southwick parish there is a chalybeate spring; during the 17th century its medicinal properties were recognised and bathing facilities were constructed.
The village church, which is adjacent to the Hall, is dedicated to St Mary. The church was built by the Knyvett family in around 1230 and has a 14th-century west tower. Parts of the church were modernised in Victorian times. The church had a cup dating to around 1570, a 17th-century cover platen and a flagon dating to circa 1667.
Inside the church is a monument to George Lynn by Louis-François Roubiliac and which dates to 1758; it was commissioned by Ann Bellamy Lynn (at a cost of £500) and shows her looking up at a profile of her late husband. The modern cross and candlesticks used in the church were made from the wood of a tree which had grown in the churchyard and were a thanks offering from Edith Capron following recovery from a severe illness in 1931. The altar rails date from the 18th century; beneath them lie the tombs of John (died 1694) and Grace Lynn (died 1694) and her father, "That learned and pious Anthony Cade", who had been a tutor and chaplain to the Duke of Buckingham.
Other features in the church include:
- The wooden panelling now found in the sanctuary was originally from Southwick Hall.
- The pulpit is of panelled oak and is possibly a part of a three-decker pulpit installed in the church in 1905.
- A discoid of a 13th- or 14th-century grave marker.
- The old oak headstock of the church's medieval tenor bell which was cast and hung by Thomas Newcombe of Leicester. Before its replacement in 1967, it had given the church 400 years of use.
The churchyard was built on land that had earlier been used by the Romans to extract the local ironstone. Due to later settling of the infilled quarry, the church has required heavy buttressing on the tower and also the rebuilding of the nave and the chancel.
The parish of 1910 hectares occupies a large area extending W. of the R. Nene into the heart of the former Rockingham Forest, between 55 ft. and 300 ft. above OD.The higher parts are covered with Boulder Clay, but a number of small streams have cut deeply into the underlying rocks and consequently bands of limestones, clays and silts outcrop along their valley sides.
Southwick parish is notable for the densely occupied area in the E., close to the R. Nene, where field work and air photography have revealed the highly complex pattern of prehistoric and Roman settlements. In addition there are three other Roman sites in the W. of the parish, one of which of considerable size, has some slight evidence of early Saxon occupation.
In the E. of the parish are the remains of the deserted village of Perio (13), perhaps the mother-settlement in medieval times.
<br /><br /><hr color="#FF0000" size="2" /><p>The Fine Pair series was originally started by wizardsmum.<br /><br />
If anybody would like to place 'A Fine Pair' of their own please do, I would just ask that you let <a href="http://www.geocaching.com/profile/?guid=0479d93c-62c5-4c92-8133-ac5d45b74921">mattd2k</a> at <a href="mailto:geocachingafinepair@gmail.com?Subject=Fine%20Pair%20number%20request." target="_top">geocachingafinepair@gmail.com</a> know first so he can keep track of the numbers and locations to avoid duplication.<br /><br />He also keeps a public Bookmark List of this series so once your cache is published please contact him via his profile page to have yours added.</p>
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