We
all recognise St. James’s Church by its
characteristic tower and spire at the west end.
The church tower
is made of stock bricks with stone dressings
and carries the four clock faces. The clock
and bells are housed in the bell
tower. The actual place where the bells
are hung is called the belfry. The windows in
the tower do not have glass, but openings or
louvres in the stonework so that the sound of
the bells can travel. Stone spiral steps lead
from the baptistry up to the belfry, then a
wooden staircase leads up to a viewing platform
in the spire and finally, a ladder leads up
to a landing further up in the spire. The tower
reminds us of the times when the
church (not St. James's) was used as a post
of defence against enemies, being square, solid
and strongly built.
The
clock, with four dials, is a simple pendulum
wall clock and was made in 1893 by J. Smith
& Sons of Derby, the builders of the great
clock of St. Paul’s Cathedral in London.
(Notice the louvre
windows to let out the sound of the bells)
The
spire, with a cross at the top rises
above the tower in the form of a tall cone or
pyramid. It is a familiar and prominent local
landmark made entirely of Portland stone and
is 48m tall.
A gargoyle
is the projecting carved stone waterspout rather
like an ugly-looking head. It was often used
in church architecture and Its purpose is to
throw out the rainwater from the gutter of the
church roof, and so to get it clear of the walls
of the building itself. The carvings have open
mouths out of which the water drains. There
are four different gargoyles on the bell tower,
one on each corner:
