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St
Botolph's Church, often known as Boston 'Stump' is spectacular from
outside and is described by Pevsner as a 'giant among English Parish
churches' Boston Stump has always been a landmark to both seafarers
and people travelling across the flat fenland that surrounds the
town.
Replacing an earlier Norman church construction of the present
building commenced in 1309 at the east end and was completed by 1390
apart from the tower. The tower construction was started in 1425 -
1430 but not completed until 1510-1520. The Chancel was originally
only designed to be three bays long but was lengthened by two
additional bays to the east possibly because of the growing
importance of commercial and religious life of the town.
In post reformation times there has been remodelling of the interior
of the building. With some minor exceptions the exterior has
remained much as it would have been at the time of the reformation.
Internally however a major programme of work remodelled the church
with box pewing, a timber and plaster vault and a sweeping away of
the medieval screens, rood and seating arrangements. The interior of
the church now largely reflects two significant periods of
restoration, in the mid 19th century and in the second decade of the
20th Century.
Over its 700 years the church has played its part in both national
and international history. It will be forever linked through the
puritan emigrants who in 1630 followed in the wake of the Pilgrim
Fathers and founded a new Boston in the United States of America.
The size of which has long since surpassed the Lincolnshire Boston
in size and importance, but the close links are never forgotten. |

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