Erpingham / Erpincham / Erpyngham

Blomefield (1805-1810) quotes the Domesday entry for this parish reporting a church in it (fol. 197), and writes: "The church is dedicated to St. Mary, and is a rectory [...] There is a tall square tower, and four bells [...] The church and tower, were begun in Sir Thomas Erpingham's time [i.e., b. ca. 1355-1428 -- this would refer to the present church, not the original one][...] Edward the Confessor [r. 1044-1066] confirmed to the abbey of St. Bennet at Holm, the churches of Erpingham and Antingham [...] Rectors. 1244, Nicholas de la Turri" [i.e., first recorded rector here]. NB: the baptismal font now in this church is documented in this Index under Norwich No. 12. The first rector of Erpingham St. Mary's is listed in Blomefield (1769) as Nicholas de la Turri with starting date in 1244. [NB: we have no information on the font of the original pre-Conquest church here].