The Church of St Margaret of Antioch - (formerly listed as the Church of St. Margaret) is pictured beloright as it is today.

Naturally it is difficult to get details from these very early days but notes survive which give an intriguing insight into some of the more mundane day to day matters and show how the issues then were not so different to those now.

A survey done in 1611 (i.e. before the 1629 rebuilding) comments on the Chancel:

 'The chancell unpaved.One windowe broken in ye glasse.There is but one seate in ye chancell and that not borded about 15 years since the parishoners took avail the other seat to make ye ministers seat'

Of the church  itself the following was noted : ' it rayneth into ye churche. The churchyard mounds out of repair.It is out of repair in ye roofe. The ivie groweth into it all over. 2 windows dawbed up and the third is cracked in the top of the stone work'.

Presumably these matters were attended to in the 1629 rebuild but only a few years later, in 1637, another survey noted the following :

'The Chancell wants painting and whiteninge. And in the .... of the church belonging to Robert Hurst is defective in the slates and wants whiteing. And a seate of Mr Andrews higher than ordinary.

Mr Bristowes seate on the south side higher than ordinary.

There wants Erasmus Paraphrase and a table for marriage writing.

The seate on the north side of the church next to Mr Andrews to be set up againe belonging to Mr Nipping. Jacob Allen and Tho. Waples so that it be made lower.

There wants a book for strange preachers.'

Whilst it is frustrating the notes are sketchy and incomplete it does give a flavour of how the church existed in the 17th Century, and, for example, how individual churchgoers appear to have had their own personalised seat. The Erasmus Paraphrase referred to was a rewriting of the Gospels in Latin by Erasmus completed between 1517-1524.

The more ancient history is that originally the Church in Denton was a chapelry said in 1535 to be annexed to Yardley Hastings. The church registers date from 1540 and the earliest church plate is a cup of 1570.  By the 18^th century, and probably earlier, it was a chapel to Yardley Hastings and Whiston both in the ‘gift of’ the Earl of Northampton whose rectors performed their duties in alternate years and shared the tithes received from the local people. In the 19^th century glebe farms of 140 acres and 64 acres were held for the benefit of these two rectors.

 In 1892 a separate benefice was made and Denton became a vicarage still in the gift of the Lord of the Manor.

 The church had a major rebuilding in 1827-8 by Charles Squirhill (1769 -1838) , a Northampton architect and land surveyor, after the building was described in a faculty dated 20^th April 1827 to be ‘in a very decayed and dangerous state’. The chancel and the tower were repaired and the vestry was probably erected then or soon after. The cost of the repairs was £700 of which The Marquis of Northampton, as ‘noble patron’ contributed £120, a further £100 came from the Enlargement of Churches and Chapels whilst apart from a £20 donation from Mr W. T.  Smyth the balance was raised by a levy on the parishioners. If these figures are correct it would have left no less than £460 to be raised from a total village population - men, women and children - of around 500 at the time - perhaps around £3 or £4 per household which, in those days, would have been a huge sum of money. The records in this regard may be

Such was the state of dilapidation of the church in the years prior to the 1827 rebuilding that for some time funerals took place at Brafield and the coffins were taken along a Coffin Path which ran from the alleyway in Main Street by Robinsons Cottage straight across to Brafield Church. That route is still a footpath today. To accommodate the coffin – presumably transported by either horse drawn or hand pulled cart –  the path way was kept clear to a width of 3 feet and even as late as the years of the 2^nd World War this tradition was maintained although the original need had long since passed.

 The church re-opened for worship on 25^th September 1828 and there is record of an inscription above the North doorway recording the repairs. This can no longer be seen however probably as a result of the church walls being replastered prior to the murals scheme being commenced. The next major rebuilding was to take place almost exactly 100 years later (see below). However a significant internal refurbishment took place in 1896 and was fully reported in the Northampton Mercury newspaper as below -

April 1896 – Re-opening of Denton church

Thursday will long be remembered by the parishioners of Denton as a very important day in the history of their church, when, after a complete restoration and renovation to the interior of the building the church was re-opened by the Bishop of Leicester (the Venerable Archdeacon Thicknesse). The church of St. Margaret’s, which is a very old building, its registers dating back to the sixteenth century, has never been thoroughly restored since 1828 and the parishioners a few months ago decided to have a large number of improvements and alterations which have been very successfully carried out and the church at the present time presents a vastly improved appearance. The Marquis of Northampton, who is the owner of the living, has taken a spirited interest in the alterations, and the parishioners have also interested themselves in the work. The pews in the church which were formerly the old-fashioned square pews have been entirely removed and the seats re-arranged; and the stove, which stood over the sanctuary aisles, has been placed to the side; whilst the pulpit on the south side of the church has been taken down and only the one on the north side remains. The sanctuary floor has been relaid with blocks of concrete, and a new altar table has been contributed, both being the gifts of the Marquis if Northampton.

New sanctuary rails and standards have been erected and a new altar cloth has been provided. The expense of the latter being defrayed by subscriptions collected by Mr. W. Jones. The pulpit frontal has been entirely renovated at the expense of Mr H. Mott of London, brother-in-law to the vicar (the Rev. T. Amys) whilst new book markers have also been contributed. The walls and ceiling have been scraped and whitened, and the organ has been removed from the corner of the south aisle near the chancel, and placed in the gallery, the cost being defrayed by contributions collected by Mr .T. Sargeant. New lamps have been purchased, replacing the candles that were formerly used, and the seats in the gallery have also been greatly improved. The cost of the alterations, which naturally tend to greatly improve the church amounts to about £80.

The service took place in the church at three o’clock, when the sermon was preached by the Bishop of Leicester (the Venerable Archdeacon Thicknesse).

There were also present the following clergy : The Rev. F. N. Thicknesse who acted as Bishop’s chaplain, Rev A. J. Miller (Wootton), Rev. R. M. Carrick (Castle Ashby), Rev. H. A. Boyes (Easton Maudit),  Rev. A. C. Ranger (Yardley Hastings), Rev. R. Medcalf (Whiston), Rev. M. F. Hall (Little Houghton), and the Rev T. Amys, the vicar.

Prayers were said by the vicar, and the first lesson was taken by the Rev. A. C. Ranger, whilst the Rev. A. J. Miller read the second lesson. Archdeacon Thicknesse delivered an eloquent and appropriate sermon from Isaiah, 58^th chapter and part of the 12th verse, ‘And thou shalt be called the repairer of the breach; the restorer of paths to dwell in’. At the outset of his able discourse, the Venerable Archdeacon remarked that restoration was a time for great joy and happiness. It was a pleasure for him to visit the old church of Denton, for it certainly presented a different aspect from that which it presented several years ago when he was living in the neighbourhood and visited the church as their archdeacon. The restoration of a church resuscitated its powers in a parish. Proceeding, the preacher referred to the question of the Church being in danger, and ridiculed the idea. He trusted and hoped the good work which had begun would continue and prosper. He congratulated them all that had been effected in the parish, and looked anxiously for some spiritual result of the effect. In conclusion, he hoped they would strive to bring others to church, and then he thought a great point would have been accomplished. The offertory, which was in aid of the Restoration Fund, amounted to £10 0s 1d. The Bishop afterwards consecrated the new portion of the cemetery at Denton. The land was given by the Marquis of Northampton, and the other necessary expenses, which amount to about £30, have been defrayed by voluntary subscriptions. After the usual ceremony at the ground had been performed by the Bishop, the sentence of consecration was read and duly signed by him. Tea was afterwards provided in the schoolroom, to which a good number attended.

This article is interesting not only for the description of the works undertaken, but also shows more examples of the generosity of the Marquis towards the church of which he was patron (see also Castle Ashby - The influence of the Estate on Denton). It is also worth noting the number of clergy from surrounding parishes that were in attendance. 

The church organ is situated in the gallery. It was built by Mr J. T. Austin, a well respected organ builder who had learned his trade from his father in Rushden. It was bought by the church in 1866 for the sum of £80 having previously been at Hinwick just East of Wollaston. Some of the organ pipes are thought to be 17th Century so may have been recycled from an earlier organ. In 1955 it was in need of repair and £100 was raised to enable this to be done. The organ is still used regularly at church services. The cast-iron corner pinnacles on the tower date from the 18^th Century. Nowadays quite a feature of the tower is the ever present flock of white doves that live on and around the church.

The Austin family went on to great things in the organ-building world. John Turnell Austin emigrated to America in 1889 at the age of only 20 and set up what is now the largest pipe organ maker in the U.S.A.

The South doorway is probably original dating from the 13^th century with a 6 panelled door. It has a stepped porch

One of the oldest features of the church is the font shown left, dating probably from the 13th century, but possibly even as early as 12th century. It is placed at the West end of the nave under the gallery and is a chalice shaped bowl mounted on a perpendicular pedestal. It is lead lined and, for some reason, has been painted all over in grey. The bowl is decorated with a row of eight large crosses in relief with stepped bases and tops, their arms connected leaving two rows of square depressed fields.