Notable Norfolk Clergy
Reverend Wilbert Awdry OBE
St Edmund’s Church, Emneth
There are many things a visitor expects to find in a Norfolk church but a stained-glass window of Thomas the Tank Engine is not one of them. The window in St Edmund’s Church in Emneth commemorates its creator, Reverend Wilbert Awdry OBE, who was vicar there from 1953 to 1965. Reverend Wilbert’s passion for railways was forged during his upbringing in Wiltshire. He grew up in a house called ‘Journey’s End’ close to a steep incline of the Great Western Railway main line and would listen to the steam engines going by and the whistle signals as he was lying in bed. Reverend Wilbert created stories about the antics of the trains for his son Christopher and went on to publish 26 books about Thomas the Tank Engine and his locomotive friends. The TV series enjoyed worldwide popularity and Thomas the Tank Engine became a beloved aspect of countless childhoods. A blue plaque at the Old Vicarage in Emneth memorializes Reverend Wilbert, the vicarage where he set up an extensive model railway in the loft. Emneth station was on the East Anglia Railway line but is now a private residence. He died in 1997 and is buried in Gloucestershire.
Canon Walter Marcon
St Peter & St Paul’s Church, Edgefield
St Peter & St Paul’s Church in Edgefield owes its survival to a man of great determination and enthusiasm, Canon Walter Marcon a.k.a. ‘The Cycling Parson’. Visitors may be forgiven for assuming this medieval church has been on this spot for hundreds of years but that is not the case. In fact, in 1882 the rather decrepit church that had been isolated by the Black Death was moved stone by stone nearer to the village and soon thrived amongst its community. The cost of £2,000 (£132,000 in 2017 money) was gradually raised. The octagonal tower was left in situ and can still be seen, alone amongst fields. Not only was Canon Walter born in Edgefield rectory, as his father was rector before him, but he also died there in 1936. His long incumbency of over sixty years has earned this much-loved figure his rightful place in the local history books and in the beautiful stained glass window in the south aisle which depicts him riding his bike.
Reverend James Woodforde
All Saints’ Church, Weston Longville
For 45 years Reverend James Woodforde kept a diary, providing a fascinating insight into rural parish life. He was born in Somerset in 1740 and was ordained in 1763, serving locally as a curate for ten years. Reverend James returned to Oxford, where he had obtained his Bachelor of Divinity, and worked as a sub-warden at New College. In 1776 he moved to the parish of Weston Longville in Norfolk to take up the position of parson and would remain in post until his death 27 years later. Reverend James’ captivating diary became well known once it was published in five volumes between 1924 to 1931. The diary covers a wide range of topics from his meals, purchases, interpersonal difficulties, village fairs, care of the poor, and national and international affairs. Notes on the weather for any given day have provided a useful source of study for climatologists. Reverend James’ nephew William inherited the diaries and they eventually found their way to the Bodleian Library in Oxford. The only known likeness of Reverend James was painted by his nephew Samuel in 1908 and hangs in the church.
Reverend James Adams V.C.
Holy Trinity Church, Stow Bardolph
Reverend James Adams was the first clergyman to be awarded the Victoria Cross, Britain’s highest award for gallant action by a member of the armed forces in the face of the enemy. He served as chaplain to the Kabul Field Force during the Second Afghan War and his brave deed occurred on 11th December 1879. During the fighting at Killa Kazi, men and horses of the 9th Lancers fell into a deep ditch full of water with the enemy closing in. Reverend James risked his own life by rushing to their aid and dragging them out under heavy fire. With Afghan forces advancing within a few yards of Reverend James, he had to turn his horse loose in order to narrowly escape on foot. He received his medal from Queen Victoria at Buckingham Palace. Reverend James then took part in the Third Anglo-Burmese War. He was made Honourable Chaplain to the Queen in 1900 and Chaplain in Ordinary to King Edward VII in 1901. He served the parishes of Wimbotsham and later Stow Bardolph, where he is commemorated on a memorial plaque in the church. Reverend James died in Rutland in 1903.
Reverend Edmund Nelson
All Saints’ Church, Burnham Thorpe
Reverend Edmund Nelson, father of Admiral Horatio Lord Nelson, took up the position of Rector of the Burnhams, the group of villages taking their name from the river Burn, in 1755. This windswept corner of Norfolk lies only one and a half miles away from the North Sea. Edmund and his wife Catherine had eleven children. Horatio was born in the rectory in 1758 and baptised in All Saints’ Church, Burnham Thorpe. Catherine was distantly related to Britain’s first Prime Minister, Robert Walpole, and Horatio was named after his godfather Horatio Walpole 1st Earl of Orford. Nearby Burnham Overy Harbour was the young Horatio’s link to the wider world as it was from here that he was captivated by sights of ocean-going vessels and interacted with merchant seamen. Catherine died in 1767, leaving a grief-stricken Reverend Edmund to raise eight children. Favours were sought from relatives to ensure the children were provided for. Edmund wrote, “as it has fallen to my lott to take upon me the care and affectation of double parent, they [the children] will hereafter excuse where I have fallen short and the task has been too hard.” In 1790 he moved out of the rectory, which is no longer there, so that Horatio and his wife Frances could move in and establish their household. He lived in a cottage nearby and made trips to Bath for his health, accompanied by Frances. Reverend Edmund died in 1802 and is buried in the churchyard. A ledger stone in the church commemorates him.
