The church has been altered over the years. In 1360 the tower fell down, probably because of a fire. It was built again in 1365 and it has a clock face on each side of it. The East end of the church (the chanel) fell down too, around 1600. It was completely rebuilt in victorian times.
Saint James' church is very old. It has been standing in the centre of Grimsby for nearly 900 years. The oldest part of the building is the West End. We can tell this because it has a round Norman arch around the door. It was built about 1114 A.D.