St. James' Church, Buttermere

3D Model

The small picturesque Church of St James is situated above the village of Buttermere at the junction of Honister and Newlands passes. The original chapel was consecrated in 1507, while the present building dates from 1840, and was restored in 1930.

A special feature is the wrought iron ‘Shepherd’s Gate’, at the entry to the porch. There is an antique organ, dated 1820. The East window by Henry Holiday, dated 1893, has Mary, Martha and a cherub head. Wordsworth said ‘A man must be very unsensible who would not be touched at the sight of the chapel of Buttermere’.

There is a stone tablet set into the window sill of a south window as a memorial to Alfred Wainwright, the famous walker and author of guidebooks. The window looks out on his favourite place to walk, Haystacks, where at his wish his ashes were scattered.