< Back NEW LANDLORD AND REFURBISHMENT AT THE GEORGE INN 1725 Submitted by Chris Hunt The George Inn in St Martins, alias Stamford Baron, Northamptonshire, being the largest and best Inn in Town, is being kept by Jonathan Smith, late of the Bear Inn at Reading, Berkshire, is just now new furnished; therefore is ready for the Entertainment of Persons of Quality and Others, with good Usage. N.B. He sells full Market Measure of Corn in the Stables. Source. Stamford Mercury (Thursday) April 8th 1725 p11/c2. Note. In 1725 the Stamford Mercury was published on a Thursday. The pages were not numbered by issue. A Printed version can be downloaded HERE Previous Next

< Back The Life and Loves of my Great Great Grandfather A talk for the Stamford Local History Society on 4th Dec 2025 by Trish Auciello George's death certificate This is my great great grandfather’s death certificate, he died in Spalding in January 1912 of bronchitis. There are three problems with this certificate: That’s not his name, that’s not his age, and that’s not his wife George was born in Barholm in 1844 as George Bunning Peake, the son of John and Susannah. John was an agricultural labourer and George followed in his footsteps. George's marriage certificate George married Margaret Hyde in January 1868 in Uffington Church, when he was 24 and she was 28. Margaret was born in Stamford in 1840 and had a tough childhood. Her father, John, was a stonemason, a skilled occupation, but they lived in Protection Place, just off Scotgate, known as a notorious slum. There were five children and Margaret’s mother, also Margaret, died aged 32 of tuberculosis when Margaret was four. John’s mother, another Margaret, moved in with them but she died in 1851, and John died in 1861. In 1861, Margaret was in service with an ironmonger in St. John’s Street, and in 1865, she had a son, called William. Margaret's Affiliation Order In March1866, Margaret obtained an affiliation order against William Harrison for child support of 1s 6d per week, worth about £15 today. He is described as a former employee of Mr Daffurn, did he lose his job because he had fathered a child outside of marriage? If life was tough for Margaret growing up, it did not improve after her marriage. Her daughter, Betsey, was born in July 1868, so Margaret was pregnant when she married George. They moved into Stamford and were living in Brittain’s Court, another slum area off Scotgate in February 1870. George's court appearance early February 1870 George appeared in court on 7th February 1870, accused of breaking into his mother’s house in Barholm and stealing various articles, some of which he pawned in Stamford. I’ve not found any follow up to this story, perhaps his mother decided not to press charges. However, just 3 weeks later…. George's trial late February 1970 George pleaded guilty to stealing a manure fork, value 1s 6d, and pawning it in Stamford. I don’t think the pawn broker was too fussy. His solicitor stated that George hadn’t been able to find work all winter and the family was in a fearful state of poverty. Margaret was described as being near her confinement, but didn’t want to enter the workhouse in case they lost their current home. George was sentenced to seven days in prison and Margaret was advised she could seek out-relief for a week. The sad postscript to this story is that there’s no record of a live birth to Margaret, perhaps those months of deprivation took their toll and the baby was stillborn. Margaret was pregnant again in the summer of 1870. George's court appearance November 1870 George was charged with fraud in Market Deeping and committed to trial at the sessions. His crime was obtaining an pair of trousers and boots by deception, it would probably only merit a fine today, but in 1870 it meant he spent the next two months in prison awaiting trial. George's trial January 1871 George pleaded guilty at his trial, and was sentenced to a further month in prison with hard labour. Folkingham House of Correction George served his time in prison here. The gatehouse is still standing and can be rented as a holiday home for around £2,000 a week in peak season. If Margaret hadn’t wanted to enter the workhouse earlier in 1870, it was inevitable when George went to prison. Stamford Workhouse on Barnack Road In the 1871 census, Margaret is in Stamford workhouse, with William, Betsey, and her son George junior, aged just 3 weeks. In the same census, George is working on a farm at Deeping St. Nicholas and claiming to be single. Inquest 1872 In August 1872, Margaret was a witness at an inquest into the sudden death of her neighbour from apoplexy. They were living on Rock Road, so it’s safe to assume George has returned to the family and indeed he started working for Hayes Coachbuilders around this time. William's Death Record Margaret’s son William died in 1874 aged 9, after being ill for a year with tubercular peritonitis. Rock Road, Stamford In 1881, the family was still in Rock Road, somewhere on the left of this photo but long since demolished. The family now consisted of George and Margaret, Betsey, George junior, my future great grandmother, Mary Ann, bon in 1875, and twin girls, Margaret and Martha Jane, born in 1879. They also had a lodger, Thomas Dexter, who worked at Hayes. So had life settled down? After all, George had been in stable employment for nearly 10 years, they had been living in the same house for around the same time, a lodger provided extra income – unfortunately not. George's trial August 1883 In August 1883, George and another man were found guilty of stealing five trusses of clover, the property of Hayes and Son, his employers for the past ten years. If a truss of clover is the same size as hay, they weighed at least 60 pounds each, not something you could easily hide. Folkingham had closed by now, George may have served his three month sentence in Sleaford. Why did he do it? Was he still struggling to support a growing family, or was it just stupidity? Corporation Buildings built 1891 George left his family, and Stamford, sometime between his 1883 prison term and the 1891 census. In 1891, Margaret was living in Corporation Buildings, on Scotgate. She is sharing three rooms with Betsey, George junior, the twins, her widowed brother John, their lodger from Rock Road, Thomas, and another lodger Elizabeth Andrews aged one. Elizabeth’s mother was unmarried and left Stamford soon after her daughter’s birth, leaving her with Margaret to look after. Margaret’s brother John remarried in 1892, but the sleeping arrangements would still have been interesting as Betsey and Thomas married in 1893. In 1891, my great grandmother was in service at 4 Barn Hill, where I like to think she had her own bedroom. 22 Scotgate built 1901 Margaret’s situation has improved by 1901, she’s now living at 22 Scotgate, the left hand half of the building in the picture. Although I imagine Thomas was paying most of the bills, Margaret was described as head of the house, also living there are Betsey and Thomas, the twins, and Elizabeth, now described as a foster daughter. My great grandmother, Mary Ann, had married in 1895, after she had their son in 1894. George junior married in 1899. With life improving for Margaret, let’s look at what George has been doing. 48 Westgate, Peterborough George was living in Peterborough in 1891, in the left hand corner section of this building. He is described as a bricklayer’s labourer. With him and described as his wife, is Susannah W. Peake, a laundress aged 39, and her son Alfred W. W. Peake, also a bricklayer’s labourer aged 17. This property looks more spacious than the three rooms Margaret is sharing with seven people in Stamford. Susannah was born in Stamford in 1851 as Susannah Harrison. In 1871, she was living and working in a pub, and later that year, she married Harry Wallis, a carpenter originally from Empingham, and had their son, Alfred William, a year later. Harry’s enlistment? Harry's enlistment? In 1876, Harry Wallis, born in Empingham, living in Stamford enlisted in the Royal Artillery. His age is four years younger, but surely this must be Susannah’s husband. So is this chicken or egg? Did Harry enlist and Susannah say “sod this for a game of soldiers”? or did she leave and Harry went for a less extreme version of the French Foreign Legion? After Harry’s army career, he spent the rest of his life in Leicester with at least two female housekeepers, and died in 1912 aged 63. What is certain is that Susannah was living in Kensington, London, in 1881, with her son Alfred. She is described as the wife of Thomas Wallis, a bricklayer, born in Kilsby, Northamptonshire. I haven’t been able to find Thomas Wallis anywhere else, so I think Susannah was using her name on the census. I don’t know whether Susannah thought Kensington would be smart and exciting, but there were four families totalling twenty five people in the same house. A plot worthy of EastEnders? So many questions…. Who was Thomas and how did he get together with Susannah? Stamford or London? Why did Susannah leave London, was it with or without Thomas? With Thomas being a bricklayer, is there any significance in George and Alfred being bricklayer’s labourers? Did they work with Thomas, perhaps locally? It’s likely that George and Susannah knew each other from her time at the pub, did they meet again through Thomas? If Thomas and George did work together locally, did they continue to do so after Susannah got together with George? Although these events could have been used in EastEnders, unfortunately this is real life and I have no answers to the questions raised. There’s no information on the 1891 census for 48 Westgate so perhaps they didn’t complete it that year. 22 Scotgate again in 1911 Margaret’s daughter Margaret married in 1905, and Martha Jane in 1908. In 1911, the remaining family are still at 22 Scotgate, but Thomas is now shown as head of the family, with Betsey and the foster daughter Elizabeth. Margaret has been relegated to the bottom of the page as mother-in-law. George in 1911 How I know that the George Wallis on the death certificate is George Bunning Peake? It’s because of the 1911 census. George and Susannah are living at 88 Winsover Road in Spalding, he is described as George Peak Wallace (Wallace and Wallis seem to have been interchangeable), aged 72, a bricklayer’s labourer from Stamford. His age is incorrect but it’s also wrong on the death certificate. The 1911 census asks for number of years married and children born alive. Susannah says she had one child, now dead, I haven’t been able to find Alfred to confirm this. She has given her years married as 39, which is factually correct, just not to George. 88 Winsover Road, Spalding This is where George and Susannah were living in 1911 and where George died in 1912. Spalding Cemetery George is buried in Spalding Cemetery, there’s no headstone but he’s somewhere in this area. Susannah died in 1918 of heart failure and she’s buried four graves away from George. Margaret's death Margaret died in 1917 aged 76 of arthritis deformans and exhaustion. By the time of her death, she had raised six children, seen two of them die, and had nine grandchildren. Margaret’s son George junior had died in 1915 from tuberculosis of the spine. One son-in-law and her eldest grandson served in WW1 and they both survived. Stamford Cemetery Margaret is buried in Stamford cemetery, she doesn’t have a headstone either, but her grave is shown here with the arrow. The grave with the book headstone is her daughter Martha Jane and her husband Charles, the cross is her grandson Thomas who died in 1926, and the small low marker to the right is Betsey and Thomas. Her other children are all buried in the cemetery. Conclusion George seems to have done his best for his family in the early years of his marriage, even if crime didn’t pay – not the ones we know about anyway. I’ve tried not to be too judgemental but it’s difficult to forgive George for deserting his family. I hope Margaret’s children were grateful that she was made of sterner stuff. Trish Auciello December 2025 A print version can be downloaded HERE Previous Next

Here you will find useful links to other websites of interest. Join The Stamford Local History Society and enjoy talks and visits around our local area. LINKS Below are links to other websites relating to Stamford and the surrounding area which may be of interest. Published Articles Can be downloaded here Open Document Lincs to the Past Lincolnshire archives View Website Stamford Civic Society local civic society View Website The Stamford Mercury Archive Trust newspaper archive View Archive Browne's Hospital Stamford historical almshouse View Website Portable Antiquities Scheme British Museum View Website Stamford Town Hall local council View Website West Deeping Heritage Group local history society View Website Society for Lincolnshire History and Archaeology academic research View research Collyweston Historical and Preservation Society local history society View Website Stamford Boys of 1911 from the 1911 census View Website Deepings Heritage local history society View Website Rutland Local History & Record Society local history society View Website East Midlands History and Heritage East Midland's heritage View Website John Clare Society National History Society View Website

< Back Royal Air Force Wittering Christmas Menu 1942 Submitted by Chris Hunt A print version can be downloaded HERE Previous Next

< Back Regulations For Brewers in Fetching Water in 1666 By Chris Hunt It is ordered that noe comon bruer or victualler whatsoever inhabiting within this corporation shall fetch or cause to be fetched any water from St Michael’s conduit, the Leaden conduit, or from ye pump standing in ye parish of S John’s, for brewing, or for any other occasion whatsoever, but betwixt ye hours of 5 of ye clocke in ye morning and seven of ye clocke in ye afternoon upon pain to fforfeit for every tubb of water soe fetched before or after ye sayd houres ye some of four pence. April 26th 1666. Source Stamford Mercury Friday November 21st 1873 p4 Hall Book 2A/1/2 Note. The spelling has not been modernised. A printed version can be downloaded HERE Previous Next

< Back Stamford Mid-lent Fair in the past Submitted by Keith Hansell Stamford Mercury March 1724 William Newzam, cutler in Stamford, selleth all sorts of London, Birmingham and Sheffield cutlery ware etc, either wholesale or retail, with all sort of white or yellow buttons for livery. Likewise hath laid on a fresh stock of fine tea, coffee and chocolate where gentlemen, ladies and others may be accommodated with as large or as small a quantity as they please. NB, during the time of the fair he will sell as cheap and as good as the Londoners, or any fair keepers whatever. Stamford Mercury March 1894 The pleasure fair was in full swing yesterday (Thursday), although tomorrow is the popular day. Several of the attractions were opened on Monday night. About the average amount of ground space has been taken up, but there are more shows than usual, the stalls and bazaars being fewer in number. The novelties this year include two of Edison’s phonographs and two fine circular switchbacks, one of the latter being in the Square and the other in the Sheep-market, and both of them being illuminated by means of the electric light. Other attractions include a ghost show, a large roundabout in the Square, an exhibition of divers at work, and a small menagerie, with a large number of coconut shies, etc. Up to yesterday afternoon the attendance was about the average. Stamford Mercury March 1920 PLEASURE FAIR, - One of the largest in respect of space occupied, the Mid-lent pleasure fairs the main attraction of Stamford and district during the current week. Owing to the wintery weather on Monday the start was delayed, but on Tuesday the visiting showmen and roundabout proprietors were able to complete the erection of their respective stands and that evening the “fun of the fair” was in full swing. The most extensive site in Broad-street is occupied by Thurston’s electrically propelled scenic railway, a highly artistic and attractive erection, and close to are Headley’s interesting show of novelties, and Peter’s collection of living freaks of nature. More stories and a history of Stamford Fairs & Markets by Keith Hansell is available in print. A printed copy can be downloaded HERE Previous Next

< Back Boat Commercial Inn, Stamford A Poem From 1865 Submitted by Chris Hunt On the Sea of Adventure Again I’m afloat! Once more have embarked, In my favourite Boat! My Spirits and Wines Are the best of their kind; My Home-brew’d is such None better you’ll find. The best accommodation That can be had in the town, Must give great satisfaction, And not cause a frown. Kind friends and the public I ask for your trade, None will treat you much better Than your Servant, JOHN WADE Source Stamford Mercury (Friday) December 22 nd 1865 p1/c4 Notes The Boat and Railway public house at the bottom of St Mary’s Hill on the corner with Wharf Road was formerly the Boat Commercial Inn, a name board closely linked to the adjacent river trade. In December 1865, it re-opened under the stewardship of John Wade a former proprietor. And to mark and publicise the event John Wade inserted the above doggerel poem in the Stamford Mercury. In 1865 its address was commonly described as Bridge-foot on St Mary’s Hill. The pub was acquired by local brewery, Melbourn Brothers, in 1911 by which time the & Railway had been added. It finally closed in 1962. Chris Hunt December 2025 A print version can be downloaded HERE Previous Next

Become a member of The Stamford Local History Society and enjoy learning more about the history of our town. Sign up today. MEMBERSHIP Use this form to become a member of the Stamford Local History Society The subscription includes reduced charges for talks, outings and events, and free entrance to members' evenings. The cost is £10 pa for individuals. Payment can be made by BACS using the bank details below or can be collected when you attend your first meeting when this form will be ready for you to sign. First name Last name Email Street Address Street Address Line 2 City Postal / Zip code Phone Select a date By submitting this form you agree to our privacy policy the details of which can be read HERE . You will confirm this agreement when signing this application form at your first meeting. Bank Details Stamford Local History Society Lloyds Bank, High St., Stamford A/c no. 18502460 Sort code. 30-84-84 Register

< Back Early History of a Mormon Community in Stamford Submitted by Chris Hunt The Mormons.- This sect (‘Latter-day Saints’ as they call themselves) have taken the room lately occupied by the Wesleyans in Gas Lane, Stamford, for the purpose of giving lectures every Sunday. It was opened on the 20th ult. (October 20th 1850), with a speech by an American elder, and last Sunday two men, one a labourer named Grice, from a village in the neighbourhood, addressed the congregation, consisting of about 20 persons including children. One of them spoke at great length on baptismal regeneration; and from the arguments used, it might be supposed that he had just come from the hands of Bishop Philpot (Strict Baptist – North Street Chapel, Stamford), had he not said that the world had been without successors to the Apostles for several hundred years, until an Angel appeared to Joe Smith, and made a revelation to him, and now the Latter-day Saints had the same power as St Peter, to admit into heaven all who believe and are baptised in their faith. Source Stamford Mercury November 1st 1850 p3/c2 In 1851 the Church of Latter Day Saints’ was recorded in the Census of Religious Worship. GAS LANE LATTER DAY SAINTS’ CHAPEL 1851. Parish of St. George. Erected about the year 1836. Separate and entire building. Used exclusively as a place of worship. Free sittings 14. On 30th March (1851). In afternoon General Congregation 14. In evening General Congregation 17. Signed Henry Wilson, Elder. Larton (Laxton) Court, St Leonard’s Street. Source Lincolnshire Returns of the Census of Religious Worship 1851. Edited by R.W.Ambler, M.A. Published by the Lincoln Record Society Volume 72 (1979) page 4. Note Below Henry Wilson was born in Castle Bytham on May 9th 1809 and died on July12th 1882 and is buried in Salt Lake City Cemetery, Utah, USA. He was a baker and confectioner and was still living in St Leonard’s Street in 1861 with his wife Mary Ann Wilson. A print version can be downloaded HERE Previous Next

< Back Harriet Swanson and William Blades. Two 19th-century market traders Keith Hansell 2024 When writing my book ‘Stamford Fairs & Markets’ I tried to add flesh to the bones of those who once sold their wares within the town, whether on a daily basis, or at one of the town’s weekly markets. It was inevitable that some would slip through the net, only to be discovered once the book had been published. William Blades, a fishmonger of Stamford, and Harriet Swanson. a butter seller from Belmesthorpe, were two such people. Harriet Swanson ‘ Suspected Child Murder at Stamford’. That was the headline from a report in the Stamford Mercury on Friday the 6th of October 1845. Harriet Swanson, a single woman of about 24 years of age, had gone to the Shepherd and Shepherdess public house around 1pm, as per usual, before leaving to sell butter in the Friday market. When returning around 6pm, she asked the landlady, Mrs. Sanderson, if it was possible to stay the night. Whilst being shown her room she announced that she was about to be confined and begged that she might not be turned away. About an hour later, at Swanson’s request, Mr. Edward Barber, surgeon, was called and was quickly in attendance. On entering the room he found the prospective mother in bed, with a man sitting by the bed-side smoking a cigar. After the man had departed, she told Mr. Barber that her name was Elisa Deacon, and that she resided with her brother and sister at Oakham and had come to Stamford thinking she might be better managed, having neither father nor mother. At eleven that evening she gave birth to a ‘ perfect and healthy’ female. When returning the following morning, Mr. Barber again found the child in good health and laying beside her mother. When asked if she had put the child to breast, she replied she had not, as she intended to “ put the child out ”, and that the nurse, who was in attendance, had the care of feeding her. On the Saturday afternoon, Swanson said that her daughter had made some gurgling noises in her throat. About six that evening, when the nurse took the child from its mothers arms, the child’s face and hands were black but it came to again after only a few minutes. After returning the child to its mother, the nurse left the room for a few minutes, but quickly returned when the mother called out that her child was dead. Mr. Barber was immediately sent for and on his arrival undressed the child but found no marks of violence, except a slight indentation on the upper lip, like the mark of a single finger-nail. The following day a post mortem examination took place but found nothing to indicate the cause of death. The inquest that followed lasted for four hours, and in the course of the investigation, Mrs. Sanderson admitted that Swanson, and the man seen on Mr. Barber’s first visit, often met at her house, sometimes going into the bedroom but generally into the front parlour. Swanson also stated that William Templeman, of Carlby, was the child's father and that he gave her a sovereign on Friday night to meet her immediate expenses. William Blades Or ‘ Pugnacious Blades’, as the Stamford Mercury headline called on Friday July the 18th 1862. Below is the transcript of that report. “A Fight, which though short was anything but sweet for one of the combatants, occurred between two fishmongers of Stamford named William Holland and William Blades, in the fish-market at the Portico on Monday morning. There seems to have formerly been a kind of partnership between the two present rivals. They had both been indulging too freely in beer, and the dispute arose in consequence of Blades attempting to carry off a box of herrings, which he fancied belonged to him. To this course, however, Holland strongly objected, having an impression that he was being robbed and high words ensued, which ended in a scuffle: the boxes were smashed, and the herrings strewn over the pavement. The disturbance being upon the very threshold of the police-station, acting-sergeant Leech interposed threatening them with “durance vile” if they did not desist. In defiance of this caution, however, they resumed the fight with increased animosity and violence, but were at last separated and locked up until their passion had cooled. They were ordered to answer for their drunken and disorderly conduct at the police-station on the following morning, but Blades was so severely punished and his vision so obscured, both eyes being deeply mortgaged, that he could not find his way to the station: the case was therefore adjourned till Wednesday, when they appeared before the Mayor (R. Bromhead, Esq.). and Edward. Cayley, Esq., and were discharged. Blades face showed such strange inequality of surface and variety of that, as would have been tested to their utmost the enamelling abilities of the notorious Madame Rachel”. Notes. The Shepherd and Shepherdess public house was located in Castle Street, Stamford, and was first recorded in 1831, later changing its name to The Castle and finally closing in 1959. From the sale particulars of 1893 it consisted of a parlour and smoke room located at the front of the building, with the bar and tap room behind. It also had five bedrooms, store-room, cellar and wash-house. The Portico, erected c.1807, stood in Stamford’s High Street, on a site formerly occupied by the White Lion public house. The fish market was situated behind the Portico, comprising two rows of covered stalls with a centrally placed pump. Market days were Monday’s and Friday’s. Blades vision must have been severely impaired as he only lived yards away from the police station in Rubbins Court on Stamford High Street. The report makes reference to a Madam Rachel, real name Sarah Russell, who operated a fraudulent cosmetic parlour in the 1860s, at 47a New Bond Street in London. She promised her female clients that she would make them beautiful forever but in truth she was no more than a con-artist, applying dangerous substances to her clients’ skin, with the inevitable results. A print version can be downloaded HERE Previous Next

< Back A Print version can be downloaded HERE Previous Next

< Back The day World War Two was declared - September 3rd 1939 Not everybody was listening to the radio on the morning of September 3rd 1939 when Neville Chamberlain announced the declaration of war to the British public. It was a Sunday and in St Martin’s Church the 11.00am service was being taken by the Reverend Cox. In the middle of the service an elderly man rushed into the church and whispered to the Vicar what he had just heard on the radio. The Rev. Cox informed the congregation from the pulpit that a state of war now existed between Britain and Germany. He then pronounced the Benediction and ended the service. Source. Recollection from 1939. A printed copy can be downloaded HERE Previous Next