Heritage Archive
(January 2014)

1 January 2014

Building on a bumper year

It might be out with the old and in with the new for many towns and cities around the country, but the North East Lincolnshire destinations of Grimsby and Cleethorpes would be quite happy for the ‘old’ to continue into the ‘new’. Although 2013 got off to a tough start for businesses in the area, Read more…

Inside the 1939 House

To enter the 1939 House is to take a step into the past – just like Nicholas Lyndhurst stepping through a portal in Goodnight Sweetheart. There are even white-painted ‘blackout’ stripes guiding you to the back door, reminding you that there is a war on. Situated on Stather Road, Burton-upon-Stather, the house is only a Read more…

Matthew Flinders, explorer

One of Lincolnshire’s famous sons is Matthew Flinders, the explorer. In 2014 we commemorate the 200th anniversary of his death. Matthew Flinders was born in Donington on 16th March 1774. He lived in the Market Square in the village where his father was the doctor. As his grandfather had also been a doctor in Spalding, Read more…

In time with the Tudors…

A lifelong passion for history has led to a host of fascinating roles for Dr Tracy Borman – but none more so than her latest, which sees her helping to bring the past of some of the nation’s most iconic landmarks to life. As the new joint chief curator for Historic Royal Palaces – the Read more…

Grimsthorpe Castle and Nancy Astor

“Jakie, is it my birthday, or am I dying?” So asked US-born British politician Nancy, Viscountess Astor of her son on 2nd May 1964. His reply to these, the last words she ever spoke, was, “A bit of both, Mum.” This exchange took place at Grimsthorpe Castle, Lincolnshire, fifty years ago, when Nancy Astor stirred Read more…

Sleaford makes a splash

Multi-million pound investments promise to ensure that a Lincolnshire market town starts the year on a healthier and greener note. A major revamp of Sleaford’s Leisure Centre has already seen a surge in people rushing to use its facilities. January is traditionally a month when people are determined to embark on a fitness plan in Read more…

The Haxey Hood

The Haxey Hood is one of the oldest traditional events in England and takes place on the Isle of Axholme in Lincolnshire. Legend has it that in the fourteenth century Lady de Mowbray, wife of the Isle landowner, John de Mowbray, was out riding on Upperthorpe Hill – the hill that separates Haxey from Westwoodside Read more…

Spring in village’s step

The village of Nettleham, in the West Lindsey District of Lincolnshire, is often thought to be an extension of the neighbouring city of Lincoln – but nothing could be further from the truth. It may be peaceful and picturesque, with many links to eras gone by, but it is certainly not just a place to Read more…

Help for horses

A charity was started in the 1930s to help the equine heroes of World War One. Its work now improves the lives of working horses, donkeys and mules in the poorest parts of the world, and fundraisers in Lincolnshire are lending a hand. Jean Rush finds out about the Brooke Hospital for Animals. From modest Read more…