Bedford
St. Mary's Church
Places > Bedford > Churches > St. Mary's Church
The earliest surviving parts of St. Mary's church are the tower, transepts and west wall. The original floor tiles of the church, dating to the fourteenth century were discovered during excavations in 1990. The bowl of the font came from the demolished church of St. Peter de Dunstable (which once stood on what is now St. Mary's Square in Bedford).
The church was closed in 1975 and became redundant in that year. It is now the home of Albion Archaeology and is in the care of Bedfordshire County Council.
The parish register of St. Mary's Church, records the burial of John Hallett in 1794, at one time midshipman of HMS Bounty then under command of William Bligh. When the famous mutiny occurred Hallett was asleep when he should have been on watch, a gross dereliction of duty. Hallett was however loyal to Bligh and was one of the crewmen who made the 4,000 mile sea voyage to the Dutch East Indies. At Bligh's court martial Hallett gave evidence against the mutineers and in 1790 formed part of the crew of HMS Pandora under Captain Edward Edwards who was given orders to capture the mutineers
Sources:
Further Reading:
St. Mary's Church, by Bedfordshire Libraries, 2005
Page last updated: 22nd January 2014