Lincolnshire Day celebrations showcase the county’s rich history

‘The Magnificent Seven’ will shine a spotlight on seven individuals whose legacies have been carved into impressive memorials within the church.

A market will also be held in the refurbished Market Place selling local Lincolnshire produce including Teaspoon Tea Company’s signature loose tea, baked goods from Bloomsbury Bakery and honey products from Fen Apiaries.

Cllr Ashley Baxter, Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Finance and Economic Development, said: “Lincolnshire Day is a great opportunity to celebrate our county’s rich history and heritage.

“The talks at St Wulfram’s Church will be a fascinating insight into those Lincolnshire figures who lived impressive lives and who are now memorialised in the church forever.

“I am delighted that we will also be coming together for the first time in the recently refurbished Market Place to recognise all that is great about Lincolnshire while supporting our fantastic local businesses.”

The two talks will take place on 1^st October at 10am and at 2.30pm and will be led by local historian, author and Chair of the Grantham Civic Society, Dr John Manterfield.

Dr Manterfield will focus on seven individuals with a local connection to Lincolnshire:

• Sir Thomas Bury; Chief Baron of the Exchequer who died in 1972. Sir Bury amassed a fortune and is commemorated by a marble monument in the church.
• Captain William Cust; the younger brother of Sir John Cust of Belton, Speaker of the House of Commons. William was a naval hero who was accidentally killed by a cannonball in 1748.
• Rev Richard Stevens; a man whose career in the church was largely aided by the support of the Duke of Rutland and his son, the celebrated Marquis of Granby. Rev Stevens died in 1771.
• Sir Dudley Ryder; achieved greatness as a lawyer becoming Lord Chief Justice of the Court of the King’s Bench based in London but had a country seat at Harrowby. He died in 1758.
• Edmund Turnor; member of the Turnor family of Stoke Rochford Hall. His monument is unusual in incorporating a variety of marbles, designed by a Peterborough sculptor. He died in 1789.
• Charles Clarke; was the last member of a family of apothecaries and surgeons that had lived in Grantham High Street for over two centuries. One of his ancestors provided the lodgings when Isaac Newton was in Grantham. He died 1796.
• Lieutenant Rupert Hardy Parker; killed at Passchendaele in 1917. His monument is a unique design made from alabaster and the epitaph reflects the loss felt by his family.

Dr Manterfield said: “Lincolnshire’s history and heritage is long and fascinating and what better place to explore it than in the magnificent St Wulfram’s Church, home to a rich collection of funerary monuments commemorating the children of leading Lincolnshire families.

“This talk will look in more detail at the lives of just seven individuals.  Six span the eighteenth Century Georgian period and one was killed in the First World War. 

“It will also look at the symbolism within those monuments, the materials used in their construction as well as the history of those individuals and their families.”

The 1-hour talk is free but tickets must be booked in advance and are limited to 20 attendees per session. Book via https://bit.ly/lincolnshireday. Refreshments will be available following the talk.

A market will also be held in Grantham’s Market Place between 9am and 2pm where visitors can find a range of traditional Lincolnshire produce.