Descriptive Gazetteer Entry for BOURN

BOURN, a small town, a parish, a subdistrict, and a district in Lincoln. The town stands on a flat tract, adjacent to the fens, at the terminus of the Bourn and Essendine railway, 8½ miles S by E of Falkingham. A large spring, the source of a rivulet, adjoins it; and two canal cuts for barges go from it to Boston and the river Glen. A Roman pavement and other remains have been found, and are thought to indicate that the place was edificed by the Romans. A strong castle was built in the Saxon times; made long and vigorous resistance to William the Conqueror; and was given by William Rufus to Walter Fitzgilbert; but has disappeared.-A n Augustinian Abbey was founded in 1138 by Baldwin Fitzgilbert; but is known now only by its site. The town suffered severely by fire in 1605 and 1637; and now consists chiefly of one street about 1¼ mile long. The Bull Inn is an edifice said to have been built by William, Lord Burleigh. The Red Hall is a brick structure, engirt partly by a morass, partly by a deep moat; long held by the Digby family; and latterly used as a ladies' boarding-school 'The town hall, in the market-place, s a fine edifice of 1821, built at a cost of £3,600; and includes court-rooms. The parish church is partly Norman; consists of nave, side aisles, a short south transept, and a lofty chancel; had formerly two large west end towers; and was finely renovated in 1852. There are Independent and Wesleyan chapels, a free school, two almshouses, other charities, and workhouse. The charities have an annual value of £813: and the workhouse was erected at a cost of £6,700. The town has a head post office,‡ two banking offices, and two chief inns; and is a seat of quarter and petty sessions, and a polling-place. A weekly market is held on Thursday; and airs on 7 March, 10 May, 30 Sept., and 29 Oct. Wool-stapling, tanning, and malting are carried on. The great Lord Burleigh and the notorious Dr. Dodd, executed for forgery, were natives. Pop., 3,066. Houses, 616.

The parish includes also the hamlets of Dyke. Cawthorpe, Dyke-Fen, Tongue-End, and Bourn North and South Fens. Acres, 9,352. Real property, £24,221. Pop., 3,730. Houses, 761. The property is not much divided. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Lincoln. Value, £320.* Patrons, the Executors of the late J. L. Ostler, Esq.-The subdistrict comprises the parishes of Bourn, Hacconby, Morton, Edenham, Withamon-the-Hill, Carlby, and Thurlby. Acres, 33,106. Pop., 7,354. Houses, 1,509.—The district comprehends also the subdistrict of Deeping, containing the parishes of Baston, Langtoft, Market-Deeping, and Deeping-St. James, and the extra-parochial tract of Deeping-Fen; the subdistrict of Corby, containing the parishes of Corby, Irnham, Careby, Little Bytham, Castle-Bytham, Creeton, Swayfield, and Swinstead; and the subdistrict of Aslackby, containing the parishes of Aslackby, Kirkby-Underwood, Falkingham, Laughton, Horbling, Billingborough, Semperingham, Dowsby, Rippingale, and Dunsby. Acres of the district, 106,934. Poor-rates in 1866, £9,700. Pop. in 1861, 21,293. Houses, 4,402. Marriages in 1866, 145; births, 614,-of which 49 were illegitimate; deaths, 318,-of which 95 were at ages under 5 years, and 15 at ages above 85 years. Marriages in the ten years 1851-60,1,540; births, 7,149; deaths, 4,049. The places of worship in 1851 were 29 of the Church of England, with 9,510 sittings; 2 of Independents, with 450 s.; 6 of Baptists, with 1,034 s.; 16 of Wesleyan Methodists, with 2,506 s.; 1 of Primitive Methodists, with 100 s.; 2 of Wesleyan Reformers, with 208 s.; 1 of Latter Day Saints, with 70 s.; 1 undefined, with 150 s.; and 1 of Roman Catholics, with 400 s. The schools were 26 public day schools, with 1,448 scholars; 59 private day schools, with 1,071 s.; 52 Sunday schools, with 3,249 s.; and 2 evening schools for adults, with 24 s.


(John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72))

Linked entities:
Feature Description: "a small town, a parish, a subdistrict, and a district"   (ADL Feature Type: "cities")
Administrative units: Bourne CP/AP       Bourne SubD       Bourne RegD/PLU       Lincolnshire AncC
Place: Bourne

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