Stamford, Lincolnshire

Stamford is a town on the River Welland in Lincolnshire, England. It is situated in a protrusion of Lincolnshire, between Rutland to the north and west, and Cambridgeshire to the south. It borders Northamptonshire to the south-west at the only point in England where four counties meet.

Related Topics:
Town - River Welland - Lincolnshire - England - Rutland - Cambridgeshire - Northamptonshire - Four counties meet

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The town originally grew as a Danish base, which by the Middle Ages had became famous for its production of wool and cloth (known as Stamford cloth). Stamford was a walled town but only a very small portion of the walls remain. Later still, Stamford became an inland port on the Great North Road. Notable buildings in the town include the mediaeval Browne's Hospital and the Elizabethan Burghley House. Because of the large number of surviving listed buildings, the town has been used as a set for television "period" dramas. Stamford is a quaint town, with street after street of timber framed and stone buildings (using the glorious luminous limestone that Lincoln Cathedral is built from), little shops tucked down back alleys, and with no traffic or street furniture it would be difficult to tell what century you were in.

Related Topics:
Danish - Middle Ages - Wool - Cloth - Stamford cloth - Port - Great North Road - Mediaeval - Browne's Hospital - Elizabethan - Burghley House - Lincoln Cathedral

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Also lying near Stamford is Burghley House, a fully restored Elizabethan mansion, vast and beautifully decorative, designed by the master architect William Cecil.

Related Topics:
Burghley House - Elizabethan - William Cecil

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Stamford was the only one of the five Danelaw boroughs not to become a county town.

Related Topics:
Danelaw - Borough - County town

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Lying as it does on the main north-south route (Ermine Street the A1) from London, several Parliaments were held in Stamford in the middle ages. The town had to manage with Britain's north-south traffic through its narrow roads until 1960, when the bypass was built, only a few months after the M1 opened. Until 1996, there were firm plans for the bypass to be upgraded to motorway standard, though these have been quietly shelved. The Carpenter's Lodge roundabout south of the town is being upgraded to a grade-separated junction.

Related Topics:
Ermine Street - A1 - London - Parliament - M1

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The oldest newspaper in England is the Stamford Mercury. South of the town is RAF WIttering, a main employer, and the Home of the Harrier.

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