Christopher Kempster was an English master stonemason and architect

Architect

An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...

 who trained with Sir Christopher Wren, working on St Paul's Cathedral

St Paul's Cathedral

St Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...

.

Kempster was from Burford

Burford

Burford is a small town on the River Windrush in the Cotswold hills in west Oxfordshire, England, about west of Oxford, southeast of Cheltenham and only from the Gloucestershire boundary...

 in Oxfordshire

Oxfordshire

Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

.
He sold Cotswold stone

Cotswold stone

Cotswold stone is a yellow oolitic limestone quarried in many places in the Cotswold Hills in the south midlands of England. When weathered, the colour of buildings made or faced with this stone is often described as 'honey' or 'golden'....

 from his quarry at Upton

Upton, Oxfordshire

Upton is a spring line village and civil parish at the foot of the Berkshire Downs, south of Didcot in the Vale of the White Horse district, Oxfordshire, England...

, near Burford, to rebuild London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 after the Great Fire of London

Great Fire of London

The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through the central parts of the English city of London, from Sunday, 2 September to Wednesday, 5 September 1666. The fire gutted the medieval City of London inside the old Roman City Wall...

 in 1666. He was also Christopher Wren's master mason during the rebuilding of St Paul's Cathedral in London. His County Hall built 1678–82 in Abingdon

Abingdon, Oxfordshire

Abingdon or archaically Abingdon-on-Thames is a market town and civil parish in Oxfordshire, England. It is the seat of the Vale of White Horse district. Previously the county town of Berkshire, Abingdon is one of several places that claim to be Britain's oldest continuously occupied town, with...

 is now the Abingdon County Hall Museum

Abingdon County Hall Museum

Abingdon County Hall Museum is a local museum in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, England.- Building :The museum is housed in a Grade I listed 17th century County Hall building, located in the Market Place in the centre of the town. Nikolaus Pevsner said of the building: "Of the free-standing town halls of...

.

The Kempster family quarry supplied stone for Blenheim Palace

Blenheim Palace

Blenheim Palace  is a monumental country house situated in Woodstock, Oxfordshire, England, residence of the dukes of Marlborough. It is the only non-royal non-episcopal country house in England to hold the title of palace. The palace, one of England's largest houses, was built between...

, Oxford

University of Oxford

The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...

 colleges, and Windsor Castle

Windsor Castle

Windsor Castle is a medieval castle and royal residence in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, notable for its long association with the British royal family and its architecture. The original castle was built after the Norman invasion by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I it...

.

His buildings, many with Sir Christopher Wren, include:

• Abingdon County Hall
• St James Garlickhythe
  St James Garlickhythe
  St. James Garlickhythe is a Church of England parish church in Vintry ward of the City of London, nicknamed ‘Wren’s lantern’ owing to its profusion of windows. Recorded since the 12th century, the church was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666 and rebuilt by the office of Sir Christopher...
  
  , City of London
  City of London
  The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
  
   (Kempster also made the font)
• St Mary Abchurch
  St Mary Abchurch
  St Mary Abchurch is a Church of England church on Cannon Street in the City of London. Dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, it is first mentioned in 1198-99.-History:The church dates back to the twelfth century...
  
  , City of London
• St Mary's Church, North Leigh
  St Mary's Church, North Leigh
  The Parish Church of Saint Mary, North Leigh is the Church of England parish church of North Leigh, a village about northeast of Witney in Oxfordshire.-From Anglo-Saxon foundation until the Reformation:...
  
  
• St Stephen Walbrook
  St Stephen Walbrook
  St Stephen, Walbrook is a small church in the City of London, part of the Church of England's Diocese of London. It is located in Walbrook, next to the Mansion House, and near to Bank and Monument Underground stations.-History:In the second century A.D...
  
  , City of London
• Tom Tower
  Tom Tower
  Tom Tower is a bell tower in Oxford, England, named for its bell, Great Tom. It is over Tom Gate, on St Aldates, the main entrance of Christ Church, Oxford, which leads into Tom Quad. This square tower with an octagonal lantern and facetted ogee dome was designed by Christopher Wren and built 1681–82...
  
  , Christ Church, Oxford
  Christ Church, Oxford
  Christ Church or house of Christ, and thus sometimes known as The House), is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England...
  
  

John Perrott, Lord of the Manor, engaged Kempster to refit St Mary's Church, North Leigh

St Mary's Church, North Leigh

The Parish Church of Saint Mary, North Leigh is the Church of England parish church of North Leigh, a village about northeast of Witney in Oxfordshire.-From Anglo-Saxon foundation until the Reformation:...

 and build a burial chapel for the Perrott family to the north of the north aisle. Kempster linked the Perrott chapel and the north aisle by an arcade

Arcade (architecture)

An arcade is a succession of arches, each counterthrusting the next, supported by columns or piers or a covered walk enclosed by a line of such arches on one or both sides. In warmer or wet climates, exterior arcades provide shelter for pedestrians....

 of Tuscan

Tuscan order

Among canon of classical orders of classical architecture, the Tuscan order's place is due to the influence of the Italian Sebastiano Serlio, who meticulously described the five orders including a "Tuscan order", "the solidest and least ornate", in his fourth book of Regole generalii di...

columns.

St John the Baptist's Church in Burford has a memorial to Christopher Kempster.