The earliest reference to the church of St Mary is in 1267, when Peter de Barton was elected abbot of Bardney there. By the 15th century the church was in ruins, and in 1522 the remaining part of the church was being used as a school. It was then used as a poor house and finally as a cattleshed. By 1749 the chapel was all that remained and 1855 was the last time that the site was used as a burial ground. The graveyard is now cleared and is currently used as a public park. {1}{2}{3}{4}{5} It has been suggested that St Mary's may have been the chapel of ease to St James' Church (See PRN 41404). However it would then have been unusual in having its own churchyard. The churchyard was approximately one acre in size in 1724. Even after the church had fallen into disuse and was demolished the graveyard continued to be used and between 1770 and 1854 it was the sole burial ground in the parish. {6}{7}