Bawdeswell / Baldereswella / Baldeshwell

The Domesday entry for "Baldereswella" mentions neither church nor cleric in it. Blomefield (1805-1810) writes: "The Church is a rectory, dedicated to All-Saints, [...] The church has a nave, and chancel covered with lead, and a square tower with five bells." The first recorded rector is noted in this author: "In 1313, William de Measdone was instituted, presented by Sir Hugh de Vere", without any reference to advowson or patronage to point to an earlier date of a church here. The old church is noted in White's directory of 1845: "The ancient Church (All Saints,) of which the nave was destroyed by the fall of the steeple in 1739, was taken down in 1844, and rebuilt by subscription on a small scale", the new church not earning much enthusiasm in Kelly (1883): "The church of All Saints is a small edifice of flint, rebuilt in 1845, having no pretensions to architectural style: it comprises chancel, nave and aisles." The present font is noted here only as an example of the tub-shaped design applied to a 20th-century font. Illustrated in Knott (2006) . The front [east side] has a scene of the Good Sheppherd inscribed in a circle. [NB: the 14th-century church was re-built in the 19th century; we have no information on the earlier font of the original church]