2012 Heritage open days
Stamford Tours on Saturday 8 September and Sunday 9 September
The theme for this year’s Heritage Open Days is Travel and Trade. Stamford Civic Society is organising two tours of a selection of interesting and relevant Stamford properties, limited to 20 people on each tour.
Historical background
Stamford, because of its position on the Great North Road has been a focus for trade and travel throughout its history. Some of Stamford's buildings hide the secrets of a thriving town with merchants trading from medieval times. This history is to be found in a number of undercrofts in the town, dating back to the 13thC. All these examples point to wealthy merchants trading at the time in the town. There is nothing to link directly to the thriving medieval wool trade in the town but it may be significant and connected to the import of more luxury goods such as wine.
Representative of trade in Stamford over a very long time is no.6 Red Lion Square now trading as Dawsons jewellery shop. It is a substantially altered 15thC jettied timber framed building and may have been a medieval guildhall or a great woolhouse for the Browne family, important wool merchants of Stamford. The roof lantern was a later addition in c.1830 and the shop front we see now in 1848.
Significantly as a centre for travellers for over five hundred years is the George Hotel. It has remained a very busy place moving from one of the most important coaching inns to the modern hotel it is today. It can trace its background to the medieval period with a number of features of this period still remaining. It has the Georgian facade we see today and the well-known 'gallows' sign which is its trademark spanning the road as you enter the town.
Another example for the traveller along the Great North Road is at No.40 St Mary's Street, now trading as Jaeger. First recorded as an inn in 1740, the building is a 15/16thC timber framed building with exposed timbers and features inside. It was known as the Cross Keys....as a pub it closed in 1932.
St John's Church a 15thC building, now in the hands of the Churches Conservation Trust, represents and typifies the market town of Stamford and people who have traded there.
Each tour will last approximately 2 hours and properties to be featured include:
Saturday 8 September 2.00- 4.00pm
The theme for this year’s Heritage Open Days is Travel and Trade. Stamford Civic Society is organising two tours of a selection of interesting and relevant Stamford properties, limited to 20 people on each tour.
Historical background
Stamford, because of its position on the Great North Road has been a focus for trade and travel throughout its history. Some of Stamford's buildings hide the secrets of a thriving town with merchants trading from medieval times. This history is to be found in a number of undercrofts in the town, dating back to the 13thC. All these examples point to wealthy merchants trading at the time in the town. There is nothing to link directly to the thriving medieval wool trade in the town but it may be significant and connected to the import of more luxury goods such as wine.
Representative of trade in Stamford over a very long time is no.6 Red Lion Square now trading as Dawsons jewellery shop. It is a substantially altered 15thC jettied timber framed building and may have been a medieval guildhall or a great woolhouse for the Browne family, important wool merchants of Stamford. The roof lantern was a later addition in c.1830 and the shop front we see now in 1848.
Significantly as a centre for travellers for over five hundred years is the George Hotel. It has remained a very busy place moving from one of the most important coaching inns to the modern hotel it is today. It can trace its background to the medieval period with a number of features of this period still remaining. It has the Georgian facade we see today and the well-known 'gallows' sign which is its trademark spanning the road as you enter the town.
Another example for the traveller along the Great North Road is at No.40 St Mary's Street, now trading as Jaeger. First recorded as an inn in 1740, the building is a 15/16thC timber framed building with exposed timbers and features inside. It was known as the Cross Keys....as a pub it closed in 1932.
St John's Church a 15thC building, now in the hands of the Churches Conservation Trust, represents and typifies the market town of Stamford and people who have traded there.
Each tour will last approximately 2 hours and properties to be featured include:
Saturday 8 September 2.00- 4.00pm
- Stamford Town Hall: an imposing eighteenth century building, which has had an important role to play in all aspects of Stamford life, including the control of trade. It houses a collection of regalia and items related to Stamford history.
- Jaeger: there are features of architectural interest throughout the building.
- Dawson of Stamford: a substantially altered 15thC jettied timber framed building.
- St John’s Church: the Churchyard is not usually open and contains interesting 17th – 19th century monuments of traders who lived in the town.
- St John’s Church: the Churchyard is not usually open and contains interesting 17th – 19th century monuments of traders who lived in the town.
- The George Hotel: an illustrated talk – showing the former minstrels’ gallery and undercroft. There will be a charge of £2.00 per person for refreshments.
- Fratelli’s Restaurant: with a vaulted undercroft 2 bays wide and ground floor wall arcading of early 13th century.
- Dorothy Perkins: with a medieval undercroft.
