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The original Church, was probably timber framed building and
was founded in 1304 by Wiliemus De Salle, whose name appears as the first Rector of St Martins.
The text under the picture on the right was printed on the back
of the photograph of the original 1714 church and tells of the history back to Saxon times.
The great storm of 1703 destroyed the church building of the time , it is believed
to be a wooden building . It is understood to be a fire caused by lightening, but no records survive . A new
church was built in 1714 for Joshua Allen and it is believed that the large black wooden door was from the earlier church
. In 1874 a baptistry by W. H. Brakspear was added. In 1886, the turret and clock were removed and the following year a new
tower was built, it was designed by George Truefitt for Sir William Cunliffe Brooks. In the same year 13
tubular bells were installed , which have sadly since dissapeared and a new lych gate was
built.
Over more recent years there has had to be a number of repairs but with each challenge we have encountered,
we became stronger in our faith. We can be rightly proud of our small but beautiful Church.
The Site
It is believed that the original church was built on this site in the late ninth century
at the time to the Saxon King, Edward the Elder (870-924) just within the Kingdom of Mercia. Ashton is not mentioned in the 1086 Domesday Book nor the ensuing Pipe
Rolls. Perhaps the land lay waste from the Viking raids for a century or more, or, the local landowner at Dunham didn’t
record all his land to evade tax, or the records were lost or misplaced. The First Church
of 1304 The first documentation
to survive mentions William de Ashton, priest in 1304—but that does not mean he was the first incumbent but is more
probably the first time the Lichfield diocesan records survive. The church was wood and plaster in common with many Cheshire
black and white churches eg. Siddington. The existing oak roof trusses, in the present building,
could be from an earlier church. It is likely that
the mediaeval church was the approximate size of the present. A chantry chapel to the Blessed Virgin Mary was licensed within this church on the south side in 1398 and dissolved
at the Reformation in 1547.
We invite you to become a part of the church today and a piece of its history tomorrow.
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