Founded in 1190 the church can be found just off the main street - down Wharf Street - a reminder that Bawtry was a river port until the 18th Century. The church’s location became a backwater as first the canals and turnpike roads cut the river traffic and then the railway company diverted the river to build the London to Edinburgh mainline. The shift of the town centre to the coaching inns on the Great North Road helped preserve the old world character of the church’s surroundings.