Sykes Churches Trail


The Sykes Churches Trail is a tour of East Yorkshire churches which were built, rebuilt or restored by the Sykes family of Sledmere House in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The tour was devised by the East Yorkshire Historic Churches Group and is divided into a southern circuit and a planned northern circuit.
Work on the churches was financed by Sir Tatton Sykes, 4th Baronet and his son Sir Tatton Sykes, 5th Baronet. The 4th Baronet engaged John Loughborough Pearson to work on churches at Garton on the Wolds, Kirkburn, Bishop Wilton and Hilston in Holderness. The 5th Baronet worked with the architects C. Hodgson Fowler, G.E.Street and Temple Moore. His achievements were far greater than his father's, and unparalleled elsewhere in Britain. He financed work on 17 rural churches between 1866 and 1913.

Churches of the southern circuit

These include:
DedicationLocationNotesOS Grid squareImage
St ElginNorth FrodinghamRestored in stages between 1877 and 1891 by the 5th Baronet. The top part of the Perpendicular tower was designed by Temple Moore.
St MarySledmereBuilt in 1893–8, to a design by Temple Moore, at a cost of £60,000. Stained glass by H.V. Milner and Burlison and Grylls.
St MaryCowlamA small medieval church restored in 1852 to a design by Mary E Sykes, daughter of the 4th Baronet.
St MichaelGarton on the WoldsDates from around 1120 and was restored in 1856–7 with stained glass by Clayton and Bell to a design of J.L.Pearson.
St MaryKirkburnA Norman church that was restored in 1856–7 when it had a porch added.
St NicholasWetwangAnother church of Norman origin which was restored by both Baronets between 1845 and 1902.
St MaryFridaythorpeRestored in 1902–3 with the addition of a new north aisle designed by C. Hodgson Fowler and stained glass by Burlison and Grylls
St MaryThixendaleOne of a group of village buildings constructed to designs by G.E.Street in 1868–70.
St MaryFimberBuilt in 1869–71 in a thirteenth-century style to replace a chapel of ease.
St EdithBishop WiltonFaithfully restored in 1858–9 with lavish internal embellishment to designs of J.L.Pearson.
St MaryWansfordNewly built in 1866–8 to designs by G.E.Street.

Other Sykes churches

These include several churches previously in the East Riding which, after boundary changes, are now in North Yorkshire.
DedicationLocationNotesOS Grid squareImage
St AndrewEast HeslertonNewly built in 1877 to a design by G.E.Street and is now a Grade I listed building.
St HildaSherburn, North YorkshireA Grade I listed building restored by the architect C. Hodgson Fowler between 1909 and 1913.
St AndrewKirby GrindalytheRestored in 1872–5 to a design by G.E.Street and after a recent grant of about £175,000 from English Heritage the church is now a Grade II* listed building.
St MaryWest LuttonSet in the Great Wold Valley and has an atmosphere of peace and wide open spaces. The architect was G. E. Street and the stained glass is by Burlinson and Grylls.
St PeterHelperthorpeStands above the village. The original wooden church was pulled down in 1872 and replaced in 1875. The church and vicarage were designed by architect G.E.Street.
St AndrewWeaverthorpeA stone built church with a Norman tower and unusual round staircase which protrudes on the exterior of the tower. It was restored by G.E.Street in 1870–72 and is Grade I listed.
St PeterLangtoft, East Riding of YorkshireThis was a restoration, by C. Hodgson Fowler, in 1900–03 when the north aisle was added.
St MargaretHilstonProbably of 12th-century origin, it was demolished and rebuilt to designs by J. L. Pearson in 1861–2. This new church suffered extensive bomb damage in 1941 and was rebuilt in 1956–7 to designs by Mr. Francis Johnson of Bridlington, reusing a Norman doorway from the original church and some 19th-century stained glass windows.