About Stamford

Stamford Civic Society

Visitors have been drawn to Stamford for many years. Celia Fiennes, a traveller in the late 17th Century described it “as fine a built town of stone as may be seen”. Sir Walter Scott apparently doffed his hat to the view up to St. Mary’s Church, claiming it was the finest sight on the road between London and Edinburgh. More recently, Sir John Betjeman called Stamford “England’s best town”.

In 1967 Stamford was made the first urban conservation area. A major book by the Royal Commission on Historical Monuments entitled ‘The Town of Stamford’ followed, detailing the long architectural history of the town and confirming the vitality of its unique built environment. In 2006, the Northfields area of town was also designated as a conservation area. You can find maps of both the Town conservation area and the Northfields conservation area on this web site.

Stamford has two blue plaques; one commemorating Sir Malcolm Sargent in Wharf Road and the other the Reverend William Stukeley in Barn Hill. The Society commissioned the latter as a project in 2010, and you can read about it here. There are a number of other plaques around Stamford, mostly dating from the 1920s, some rather more historically accurate than others.

Stamford has a wide variety of organisations that provide more information on the town and surroundings. Here are just a few of them.

Visit Stamford - a general guide.

Stamford Mercury - our local weekly newspaper

Stamford Living - our monthly magazine

Stamford Town Partnership, representing both local government and groups in the town.

Stamford Town Council

Stamford Chamber of Trade and Commerce

Stamford has a large number of beautiful churches. Information on all of them can be found here. Other buildings of interest include Browne’s Hospital, St. Leonard’s Priory, and of course, just outside town, Burghley House.

Other places to visit, by appointment include:

Stamford Hospital Museum

The hospital museum opened in August 2010 and contains a fascinating collection of paintings, documents, medical instruments, photographs, training aids and much more besides which provides a unique glimpse into the history of the hospital and the development of medical practice. The museum is open by arrangement to groups and is also open to the public on advertised days throughout the year.

Group visits can be booked with Matron Brooks on 01733 678270 or via email to

susan.brooks@pbh-tr.nhs.uk

Stamford School Chapel

The Stamford School Chapel stands on the site of the church of Stamford St Paul which was founded in the 12^th century. It was where Stamford School was founded in 1532 and was extended and re-consecrated in 1930. It now is used for religious services on a daily basis.

The School Chaplain is the point of contact for visitors; he can be contacted by email on mgoodman@ses.lincs.sch.uk

Stamford Town Hall

The Town Hall was built in 1778, replacing an earlier building spanning the Town Bridge.

For initial enquiries about visiting, please contact the Town Hall Stamford Tel: 01780 753808. A may be incurred.

The tour includes Mayor's Parlour, the collection of Civic Plate, known as the Regalia, Council Chamber, Court Room and the Dungeons and takes approx 1 Hour 30 Minutes.