Bargate Stone

Of the strata that comprise the Lower Greensand Rocks in the Godalming area, the Bargate Beds are of the chief economic importance.

They outcrop as the top beds of a dissected plateau and cover a roughly circular area of about three miles radius, with Godalming as the centre. In these beds much of the sand has been cemented into large masses or doggers of hard, buff grey, calcareous sandstone. These stones are of some five to six feet in thickness. When weathered they split into thin slabs, which make them suitable for crazy paving, rock gardens and walls. Thicker masses have also been put to more solid uses such as churches and bridge building. The 12th century tower of Godalming Parish Church being a prime example.