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St Paul's Church

Situated to the north of the village, Knowbury church stands in an imposing position on the hillside, yet can be easily missed. Knowbury originally grew in the 17th century around the local iron ore mining and the whole area later expanded with coal mining, limestone quarrying and the extensive stone quarrying on Clee Hill. The population expansion brought the need for a new church and Robert Clive of Oakly Park supplied the land and stone to build St Paul's in 1840. The church closed in 1874 because the north wall became unsafe. The church was restored between 1881 and 1885, complete with a new tower and chancel, largely funded by the Knight family (SO4474 : Downton Castle) and Lord Windsor, 1st Earl of Plymouth and son of Robert Clive (SO4876 : Oakly Park).