In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Finchale like this:
FINCHALE, a place on the river Wear in Durhamshire; 3¼ miles NE of Durham. Synods were held here in 788, 792, 798, and 810; Godric fixed his hermitage here in 1100; and Henry de Pusar, afterwards Bishop of Durham, founded an abbey here in 1196. The abbey was Benedictine; and considerable ruins of it still exist. ...
The church was early English, and measured 244 feet by 62. The nave has four piers on each side, alternately round and hexagonal. The choir is longer than the nave; has lost its east wall; but retains a circular turret, two circular columns, and remains of canopied sedilia. The two transepts are co-equal in dimensions; and the north one has two fine lancet windows. The central tower is 21 feet square; and had a low heavy spire till 1655. The chapter-house is on the east side of the cloister; the refectory is on the south side; and the latter measures 86 feet by 28, has six early English windows, and surmounts a crypt, with a row of four octagonal pillars. A farm-house now adjoins the ruins.
Finchale through time
Finchale is now part of Durham district. Click here for graphs and data of how Durham has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Finchale itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Finchale, in Durham and County Durham | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/20917
Date accessed: 18th April 2024
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