Boston Stump in Lincolnshire at 272 feet (83 m) high, one of the highest church towers in England.
It is the tallest non-cathedral church tower in the world, measured to the roof and until the 19th century, had the tallest roof of any building, religious or secular, in the world. It is visible for miles over the counties landscape. In reality, it is the Boston Parish Church, or to give its full official title "St Botolph's Church of the Parish of Boston",
The church is actually one of the largest parish churches in England, and its tower, the 14th highest England, leading to so-called Boston Stump nomenclature.
500 years later, it is still a matter for hot debate as to how the nick-name arose. One train of thought is that during the 70 years construction, it looked like a stump. Another was that it was meant to be topped with a spire, although this would be most unusual for a lantern tower. A further explanation was the naming as a result of the incredibly dramatic appearance of it from afar over the fens.
As was always the case all those years ago before the advent of mechanised earth-diggers and movers, the church took many years to complete, just over 200. Work started in 1309 and finishing around 1520, although the tower itself wasn’t started until 1450. However, for a church and tower of this size, 200 years is termed a relatively short period of time!
However, despite the church being built only ten metres away from the River Haven, there has been no subsidence or foundation restoration work needed, and the tower, despite its great height, leans by less than an unbelievable half a centimeter.
The tower, reached by 209 steps, contains a “carillon” of 36 bells and a further 10 bells hung for traditional full circle ringing.
The tower has no doubt served a great purpose as a marker for travelers on The Fens and in The Wash. It is thought that it was once lit from inside the tower for this very purpose. During World War II, with the number of live airbases in the county, pilots seeing the landmark knew they were almost home.
Boston Stump in Lincolnshire has been ranked by many as one of the oustanding pieces of Christian architecture in England. Infact, in the book, "England's Thousand Best Churchs", the acclaimed author, Simon Jenkins, has placed St Botolph's within the top 18.
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