Hough on the Hill

All Saints Church

All Saints Church is an Anglo - Saxon west tower lower section and has a semicircular stair projection similar to Broughton in the north of Lincolnshire. This is made of rough masonry with irregular quoins with small arched windows to the north and south and in the stair projection are tiny round, arched, lozenge shaped and oblong windows. There is a small oblong window of a similar size and form set into the south porch wall. The semicircular stair projection appears to be of one build with the tower. the tower arch into the nave is the traditional tall narrow arch with a slight chamfer and high above this is a triangular headed doorway. The nave above and below the clerestory is Anglo - Saxon and older than the tower. The east wall of the tower is actually built above and over the west wall of the nave, hence the straight joint between the tower and the west wall of the south aisle.

There was a restoration carried out in 1845 and the roof of the nave repaired in 1906-1908.
The font is circular and Victorian and in the vestry is a piece of the impost of an arch which has interlace decoration and a row of small decorative baluster shafts usually indicating a date of 6th or 7th Century. The east window is brightly coloured glass of 1857 - maker unknown , but a north aisle window of 1901 is Kempe and the south aisle one of 1926 by Kempe and Co Ltd.

There are a pair of identical standing monuments with a white sarcophagus in front of a black obelisk by Benjamin Palmer of 1842. These are to Edward Payne died 1728 and Thomas Payne died 1842. There are other memorials to John Marris Died 1785 by Edward Tatem. Arabella Ashton Died 1792 by J. Wallis. William Farmer died 1810 and Jackson Farmer died 1825. Both by Tathams William Ashton died 1826 by R. Marshall and finally Francis Musson died 1837 by Collingwood of Grantham.

There was a 12th century Priory of Augustinian Canons which stood south of the church of which nothing survives.

There is an Anglo - Saxon cemetery on Loveden Hill nearby. The hill once formed the meeting place of the Loveden Wapentake. There were excavations carried out in 1925 and 1926 and again in between the mid 1950’s and 1972. It was revealed as one of the largest pagan cemeteries in the country with over 2000 burials of which the majority were cremations in urns some of which had runic inscriptions. With some of the inhumation burials were marvellous grave goods including two hanging bowls. There was also a ceremonial whetstone found and part of a roman column which is assumed to point to a villa somewhere in the area.

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