By the Rev. Thomas Miles. 



117 



There are three monuments to members of the Topp family, in 

 the north aisle of the church. The oldest is one of those handsome 

 canopied stone tombs which were in fashion in the time of Elizabeth 

 and James 1st. It is a good specimen of the style, and is supposed 

 to commemorate the builder of Stockton House, John Topp, Esq., 

 who died 1632, and his wife Mary, eldest daughter of Edward 

 Hooper, Esq., of Boveridge, Dorset, who died in 1617. There are 

 no traces of an inscription, but the arms of Topp, impaling Hooper, 

 carved on the gable, prove it to be the monument of the founder of 

 Stockton House. The recumbent effigies are uninjured, excepting 

 that the feet of the female figure are gone, and an ornament on 

 the top of her head-dress, was broken by a fall of a part of the 

 vaulting over it in 1840. On the west side of this tomb is a 

 mural monument of black and grey marble. On a shield above the 

 cornice, are the arms of Topp, impaling, Azure, a chevron between 

 three pheons Or, within a bordure ermine, for Swayne. The in- 

 scription is as follows: — 



" Extra sacros hos parietes, jacent ex voto Joannes Topp, generosus, ejus- 

 dem nominis junior, et Elizabetha uxor ejus, Ideoque nunc extra jaeent quia 

 multum prius intra, : genuina nempe pietas deprimendo elevat cultores, ascendit- 

 que deorsum. Extra Templum jacent qui tot viva Dei instaurarunt Templa, 

 quique indies ipsum Templi Dominum vestierunt et cibarunt. Vixerunt 

 hilariter Deo aliisque, et sic optime sibi ipsis. Sublatos hos ex oculis lugent quot- 

 quot norunt, et non parce Curatores Testamenti qui pia fidelitate haec posuerunt 

 marmora, Anno Dom. M.DC.LXIIII." (He was the eldest son of John Topp 

 and Mary Hooper.) 



The other monument in the north aisle rests on the cap of the 



east pier, fronting west. It is in the form of a shield of white 



marble, and has this inscription : — 



" Alexander Topp, Citizen and Merchant of Bristol, 4th son of Edward Topp, 

 Esq., and Christiana his wife, died 30th January. 1738, in the 41st year of his 

 age, and at his own request was brought to Stockton, and buried near this 

 place." 



" Edward Topp. 2nd son of the same Edward and Christiana Topp, who 

 died in London 24th of Feb?., 1740, also lies here. Mors Janua Yitse." 



This Edward Topp is supposed to have been buried in the nave, 



under a stone marked E. T., where a skeleton was found when the 



grave was opened to receive the remains of Mrs. Henry Biggs. 



The bones were re-buried in the same place. 



