uesday 27th April 1876 saw the Spring Fair in Spalding. The area was recovering from several years of rinderpest that devastated local livestock followed by drought.

Throughout the Middle Ages fishing rights were an important economic asset throughout the Fens and were d by a complex structure of...

After much work I have now published the full version of my book "Marsh Fen and Town South Lincolnshire and Beyond". It is a hard back book just under A4 size consisting of 450 pages, over 250,000 words and over 200 pictures and illustrations.

In 1835 South Durham MP Joseph Pease succeeded in getting a Bill passed in Parliament ending bull baiting, dog fighting and cock fighting. But the annual Bull run in Stamford was to continue.  Here I consider this, how this was resisted and then consider the consequences of a recent occurrence of a young bull running through the middle of Birmingham.

Arthur Young described Long Sutton in 1771 as follows: “Long Sutton common is one of the most famous tracts of land in this country; it...

An insight into the working life and accomodation in the 19th Century Lincolnshire Fens

Growing crops in a rotation is an old method of managing soil fertility that can be seen in Roman times.  However, the development of...

In 1890 the industry of Lincolnshire was described thus: “Lincolnshire being almost wholly an agricultural county the manufactures are,...

The following extract by the Revd. Daniels published in 1812 gives a detailed account of goose rearing in the Fens and in France...

What of my identity? It is interwoven between marsh, fen and town but the world changes.  My roots and ancestry is firmly in the Fens....

The local anger to this was huge and Professor Beard suffered an horrendous personal attack and an inappropriate backlash. In the meantime,

I have emphasized earlier that the countryside of The Wash and the Fens inland effectively serve large towns and cities. The fisherman...

Urban bias could be seen as an antidote to parochialism. But, like parochialism, urban bias can be bad thing as well as good. Urban bias...

Years ago I had to go the Canary Wharf, London for a three hour meeting. I had always had many preconceptions of London many to its...

All towns have and need key meeting places that evolve over time and become centres for social and commercial activity and one of the...

On the corner of Red Lion Street facing  New Road was and still is Sheddy Turner’s fish and chip shop. Turner’s are descended from a...

At the corner of New Road was the grand stone building that was originally built by and occupied by S & G Kingston auctioneers, land...

Just across the entrance to Chapel Lane from the White Swan  was Tom Fryer’s shop, a gents outfitters and tailors. As a child I remember...

I expect that many Spaldonian readers of my age and older (born 1967) may look at the heading I’ve chosen "My Parochial Town" and start...

Men of the Town of Spalding - Introduction As I look at Spalding I enter a personal area that is deliberately self-indulgent. However, it...