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YOUR VIEWS ON LINCOLNSHIRE'S HERITAGE

Heritage Lincolnshire is aiming to develop its role and services and is currently looking for opinions and suggestions from any interested members of the public. Here is a direct link to the short questionnare on its website.

WHAT A GOOD IDEA (at Saxilby)!

On a guided walk the leader will sometimes produce a picture of what a site used to look like before an historic structure was demolished to make way for a 1960’s housing complex.

Saxilby and District Local History Society go several steps further. On Sunday, 10 August 2008 every member of the visiting SLHA party was furnished with three sheets of old photographs of Saxilby at the commencement of their walk. The guides, Chris Hewis and Keith Jubb, made full use of these at each stop on Bridge Street and High Street. This not only made it easy to visualise past scenes but also sparked off questions, stories and legends associated with the site.

The walk began at the footbridge over the canal (the Foss as Chris insisted, not Foss Dyke, which is translated as Dyke Dyke) where a number of pleasure craft were moored and several passed by on this fine Sunday morning. Road, rail and waterway - a whole history in itself – come together at this point, the numerous local hostelries doing a flourishing trade from the toll road days, to the fishermen arriving from Sheffield by train.

The walk progressed along Bridge Street and High Street past shops, chapels, workshops, grand and small houses up to the Manor House. 'Wow!' Everyone exclaimed. It was a great privilege to be invited into this lovingly restored medieval house built by the Burgh family in the 15th century. It is a truly fantastic house.

Our Saxilby friends had arranged an excellent buffet lunch at The Anglers Hotel to complete the visit. Here other members of the Saxilby group joined Chris, the Chairman, Keith, the Vice-chairman and Harry Webb, the President to wile away another hour of discussions on the village. SLHA can thoroughly recommend a walk round Saxilby under the guidance of the Saxilby members.

CARRE STREET, SLEAFORD

More than 70 people met in St Denys' Church Room, Sleaford on 18 July for the twentieth annual W H Hosford Memorial lecture given by Simon Pawley on 'An Accidental Road: the Evolution of Carre Street, Sleaford'. He gave a fascinating and wonderfully illustrated lecture on the street's history, introducing his audience to many strange and interesting characters along the way. Simon paid tribute to many who had helped him in what must have been a vast amount of research into the street - a still ongoing project. Thanks are due to the Sleaford branch of SLHA for such an enjoyable evening.

NATIONAL AWARD FOR SLHA BOOK

The Association for Industrial Archaeology has awarded its 2007 prize for an occasional publication to SLHA's recently published book about Lincolnshire's agricultural engineers and machine makers Ploughs, Chaff Cutters and Steam Engines. This is a prestigious national award which reflects great credit on the 12 writers as well as the designer and printer. Copies of the book are available from the society (see Other SLHA Publications).

A DAY IN HECKINGTON

The annual meeting of the Society was held at the HQ of Heritage Lincolnshire in Heckington on 21 June. After lunch one group of members was given a conducted tour of St Andrew's Church, Heckington, led by David Stocker and Revd David Boutle. This is "one of the dozen or so grandest churches in Lincolnshire" according to Pevsner, with its rare Easter Sepulchre, probably the outstanding feature.

A second group of members visited Heckington's unique 8-sailed windmill, followed by the adjacent Station Museum, which is based in the waiting rooms and office of the original station buildings. (The mill still produces flour - on a non-commercial scale - and the station, on the Poacher Line from Sleaford to Boston and Skegness, continues to serve the village.)

HARLAXTON MANOR

A group of SLHA members enjoyed a conducted tour round Harlaxton Manor on 31 May. This extraordinary country house, designed by Salvin for Gregory Gregory in the 1830s, is now the European base for an American university. The house has many splendid features - notably the ornate Jacobean/baroque ceilings and the remarkable central staircase in cedar with heavy plasterwork decoration. Industrial archaeologists in the party were intrigued by the unusual tunnel tramway which runs from the high ground at the rear of the house so that provisions (e.g. coal, flour) could be dropped through chutes into domestic rooms below.

The house is open to the public on Sunday 10 August this year. At other times it is open for group tours only by appointment. Telephone: 01476 403013.

CARRINGTON STEAM RALLY

Over the Spring Bank Holiday weekend dozens of steam traction engines and scores of old tractors got up steam and went through their paces at this popular annual event a few miles north of Boston. Not only steam enthusiasts but also ordinary families just looking for good day out braved the unseasonably cool and windy weather and found plenty to interest them.

Our illustration is of one of the showman's engines on display but perhaps the most outstanding machine at the event was one of the earliest ignition/compression tractor in existence (see Gallery).

LOUTH MUSEUM : JEAN HOWARD

The Honorary Curator of Louth Museum, Mrs Jean Howard, is stepping down this summer after 18 years of eventful and creative service. She has been a key player in the outstanding recent project that has seen the museum extended and remodelled

DNA STORIES

Sky Television are to present a second series of programmes entitled DNA Stories. The aim is to help people find answers to unresolved family issues. With the help of a free DNA test, the programme aims to help confirm the identity of a relative or reunite a long-lost sibling.

If you are wish to participate contact the production team on 0871 827 5020 or email dnastories@stv.tv.

SLEAFORD DATE STONES

Michael Turland is recording the date stones in Sleaford and has already found over 70 which are earlier than 1925. He will be publishing reports in the newsletters of the Sleaford and District Civic Trust this year. He also plans to lead walks around the town to look at stones; one of the dates is over the Heritage Open Days weekend in September. (N.B. As Michael points out, date stones do not lie but they may have been moved from their original sites.)

OXFORD DICTIONARY OF NATIONAL BIOGRAPHY

Access to this remarkable website (with over 200 Lincolnshire-born individuals, for example) is available through the County Council's Library Service website - provided you hold an LCC library card. (Similar access arrangements apply elsewhere.)

SOCIETY OF LANDSCAPE STUDIES CONFERENCE 2008

This conference is at Sheffield University on 11 October 2008 and concentrates on South Yorkshire and the North Midlands. The programme includes 'The Shrunken Medieval Village of West Halton, Lincolnshire'. Information from: Brian Rich, 11 Adams Grove, Leek, Staffs, ST13 8NX. Email: brianrich457@btinternet,com.

BALH : AN HISTORICAL NOTE

In the 1930s Major Northcoates of the Rural Community Council and members of the Lindsey - later Lincolnshire - Local History Society, campaigned for a national body to support and sponsor local history. The result was the establishment of The Standing Conference for Local History. This eventually became the British Association for Local History (BALH). From the outset Lincolnshire members were regular attenders at national meetings. Major Northcoates, Flora Murray, Sir Francis Hill, Tom Baker and Enid Ballard are names which regularly crop up in the early minutes. The SLHA representative at present is Dr. Tim Lomas, who chairs the Education Committee of BALH.

ORAL HISTORY RECORDINGS : AUDIT

SLHA, the University of Lincoln and the County Council’s Heritage Services are working together to conduct an audit of oral history sound recordings relating to any aspect of Lincolnshire, whatever their date or location. Information is sought about any such recordings, with details of topic, date, name of interviewee, location and format of recording. Replies please to SLHA or to Sara Basquill at Museum of Lincolnshire Life, 01522 528448. The eventual outcome is intended to be a comprehensive web-site index with direct access to at least some of the material.