Ruth's Blog

St James’ Church has the tallest spire of any medieval parish church in Britain, 88 m in height.  Many readers will know that in 1844, William Brown climbed up scaffolding to the top, and painted his wonderful 360ᵒ panorama of the town – you can see this in the Sessions House and in Louth Museum.   But several other ascents have become part of Louth’s historical legend.

The museum has recently been given a copy of a letter written in July 1937 by Della Marsden, a schoolteacher and botanist, who lived in Westgate.  She wrote to her friend Joan, “Our spire weather cockerel, which has been down for re-gilding and has earned quite a tidy sum for the fund by being ‘on show’, is to be replaced tomorrow.  Barbara Burton, the Rector’s daughter, is going up to perform the ceremony – 371 ladder steps to the top!  Lots of folks have been up the last 2-3 weeks under the guidance of a local builder [Arthur Ingram].  He has been up 51 times, escorted 242 people – 7 others started but turned back – and has taken in £25 7s 6d.”

“School Hours”, a book published in 1823 by Jacksons of Louth, includes a poem about the climbing of St James’ spire by a drunk youth, in 1818.  The newspapers give more details. On a Tuesday afternoon Ben Smith, a lad about 18 years old, in response to a bet of three shillings, and having drunk about 10 pints of ale, ascended the spire without any scaffolding or ladders.  He tied a handkerchief round the iron which supports the weathercock.  After he had remained some time upon the top stone, danced a hornpipe, and performed several other antics, he descended with composure to the bottom of the spire, and on the point of one of the pinnacles of the tower he stood upon one leg with his arms extended.  The numerous spectators below witnessed this with horror and astonishment.  Ben’s punishment from the magistrates of Louth was to be locked in the stocks.

Several decades earlier, in 1771, the spire had been climbed by Anthony Fountain, a twenty-year-old sailor from Doncaster, who was working on one of the keels on the newly opened Louth Canal.  At the top, he danced several times round the iron that supports the weathercock, then he descended, unhurt.  It was a Wednesday, a market day, so Anthony had a large crowd, said to be a few thousand spectators.

In recent years, visitors to St James’ Church have not been allowed to climb the tower in the spring and early summer as peregrine falcons nest on the upper walkway.  But during the rest of the year, why not climb to the top of the tower (I mean the tower, not the spire), and admire the wonderful view.

In June 2025, we received an interesting snippet from Bill Toyne regarding Barbara Burton and the cockerel:  My late mother told me that when the day came to re-fit the rooster, a ceremony had been organised.  Unfortunately, nobody had informed the contractor that workmen were required to transport the rooster from the ground to the top.  My father, William Toyne headmaster of North Thoresby School, was at the ceremony and came to the rescue!  He was a powerful man and popped the rooster on his shoulder and up he climbed.  The records suggest that the rector’s daughter placed the rooster back in situ but that is not the case.  No doubt she was at the very top and had a hand on said rooster but it was my father who did the deed!