We all
recognise St. James’s Church by its characteristic
tower and spire at the west end.
The 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:
