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4. Questions - Got a question about Grantham then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....
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6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your Grantham wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.
7. Feedback - happy with your Grantham then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.
8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the Grantham site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site
9. Contact - got a question about Grantham, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.
10. Payment - ready to pay for your Grantham, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.
{{infobox UK place||country = England|latitude= 52.9182|longitude= -0.6382|official_name= Grantham|population = 34,592|shire_district=
South Kesteven|region= East Midlands|constituency_westminster= [Grantham and Stamford (UK Parliament constituency)|post_town= GRANTHAM|postcode_district = NG31|postcode_area= NG|dial_code= 01476|os_grid_reference= SK915365|london_distance= 110 mi (177 km)
Boxing the compass|map_type=Lincolnshire
-->
Grantham is a
market town within the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. Located along the course of the
River Witham, twenty-four miles (39 km) to the south-southwest of the city of
Lincoln, Lincolnshire, it has a total resident population of 34,592.
The town is best known as the birthplace and childhood home of former prime minister
Margaret Thatcher, and as the place where
Isaac Newton went to school. The town is situated within short walking distance of an ancient
Roman road, and was the scene of Oliver Cromwell's first advantage over Cavaliers during the English Civil War. Grantham is also notable for having the first female
Law enforcement in the United Kingdom officers in the
United Kingdom, who began their role together on
November 27 1914, during the First World War. Miss Mary Allen and Miss E. F. Harburn reported for duty on the
beat. Mary Allen was a former suffragette and had been previously arrested outside the British House of Commons, and later went on to be the commandant of the UK's women's police force, from the 1920s up to 1940. She helped to set up women's police forces in other countries, including
Germany. Edith Smith had the first powers of arrest from August 1915.
Geography and administration
Grantham once lay within the ancient
Loveden Wapentake in the Soke of Grantham in the Parts of
Kesteven.
Political representation
Politically the town is part of the Grantham and Stamford (UK Parliament constituency) constituency and is represented in Parliament by
Labour Party (UK) Member of Parliament (MP)
Quentin Davies. Davies had been elected to the seat as a member of the Conservative Party (UK) before crossing the floor to join
Labour Party (UK); the constituency has a long history of electing Conservative Party (UK) members of Parliament.
The local authority - South Kesteven District Council - is currently Conservative Party (UK) led, with the current political spread as 35 Conservative, 15 Independent, 2 Labour and 6 Liberal Democrat councillors.
History
Etymology
The origin of the name "Grantham" is uncertain, though is said to probably be
Old English language "Granta+ham", meaning "
River Cam's village", and appeared as early as 1086 in the Domesday Book in its present form of Grantham.Mills, A.D. (1991)
"A Dictionary of English Place-Names," Oxford University Press.
Prehistory
Late neolithic vessels from a burial were found at Little Gonerby, in the north of the town, in 1875. MAY Jeffrey (1976)
Prehistoric Lincolnshire page 84, published by History of Lincolnshire Committee
Military history
During the famous Dambusters Royal Air Force (RAF) mission in May 1943, the RAF Bomber Command's
No. 5 Group RAF and the operation HQ, as Barnes Wallis nervously learnt the grim news, was in
St Vincents, a building which later housed a district council planning department. It was built by Richard Hornsby & Sons in 1865, lived in by
Richard Hornsby's son, and is now a private house. In 1944 (including D-Day), this was the headquarters for the USAAF's
Ninth Air Force's IX Troop Carrier Command , being known as Grantham Lodge.
RAF Spitalgate trained pilots in the war, and was not an operational base.
Industrial history
In 1905,
Richard Hornsby & Sons of Grantham (founded 1815) invented the revolutionary caterpillar track, for use with Hornsby's
oil engines; these engines were invented by
Herbert Akroyd Stuart, from which Hot bulb engine principle the
diesel engine also evolved, being manufactured in Grantham from July 8th 1892. In 1909, Hornsbys showed the British Army their invention, who were bemused, but took the idea no further than that, although they subsequently bought four caterpillar tractors in 1910 to tow artillery. A short time later, Hornsbys sold the patent for the
caterpillar track in 1914 to The Holt Manufacturing Company of California, USA for $8,000, having only sold one caterpillar tractor commercially. Hornsby's design was far ahead of anything else around at the time. Thanks to the ownership of the patent, this company would become the world-dominating Caterpillar Inc. Tractor Company.
Benjamin Holt even claimed to be the real inventor. In December 1914, the British Army's Colonel
Ernest Dunlop Swinton saw one of Holt's caterpillar tractors towing a piece of artillery, and realised its literally ground-breaking role as an attack vehicle. One year later the tank was born (utilising Hornsby's initial designs), being made in nearby
Lincoln, Lincolnshire by William Foster & Co. Ltd. It first saw action at the Battle of Flers-Courcelette on 15 September 1916. In 1918 Hornsbys amalgamated with Rustons and the company became Ruston and Hornsby.
Aveling & Porter of
Rochester, Kent, Kent, would join with Barford & Perkins of Peterborough to become Aveling-Barford Ltd in 1934, largely due to financial help from
Ruston & Hornsby. The new company took a former site of Hornsbys, naming it the '
Invicta (motto)' works, which is from the motto on the coat of arms of
Kent, and translates as 'unconquered'. It did not fare well with the sinking market for large dumper trucks and road rollers, and now as Barford Construction Equipment, it makes dumpers for construction sites, being owned by Wordsworth Holdings
Public limited company, owned by the entrepreneur Duncan Wordsworth. A trailer company, Crane-Fruehauf, has moved into part of the factory, from its former home of Dereham, when it went into receivership in early 2005.
British Manufacturing and Research Company (or BMARC), on
Springfield Road, made munitions for many years. It was owned by the Swiss company,
Oerlikon, until 1988 then became part of Astra Holdings PLC, and was bought by BAE Systems in 1992 who then closed the site.
The food processing industry now employs the largest contingent of Grantham's citizens, including Fenland Foods (part of
Northern Foods) on the Earlesfield Industrial Estate, Moypark (formerly Padley) in Gonerby Hill Foot, and a large
Frozen food factory (PAS) near Easton, Lincolnshire. The
Woodland Trust is based on
Dysart Road. There is a small FM transmitter near the town's bypass on
Gorse Lane from which
BBC Radio Lincolnshire can be heard on 104.7 and
Lincs FM on 96.7.
Landmarks
The main local landmark is the impressive parish church of
Wulfram of Sens, which has the
List of tallest churches in the world (282 ft) among English churches, and is also home to the country's first public library. In 1598, Francis Trigge Chained Library, the rector of Welbourn gave £100 for a small library of books for the clergy and
literate laity of Grantham. Two hundred and fifty of the original volumes remain and are kept in the parish church.
Grantham is home to the world's only 'living' pub sign: a beehive of South African African bee perched in a tree since 1830.
Edith Smith Way is the name of the road outside the Guildhall Arts Centre, parallel to
St Peter's Hill. The Angel & Royal Hotel is one of Britain's oldest inns.
John of England held court there in 1213, when the site used to be a hostel for the Knights Templar. The George Hotel nearby (known as St Peter's Place in 1992, then became the George Shopping Centre) was mentioned in
Charles Dickens’ novel Nicholas Nickleby. Also in the town is the Blue Pig. Much of the town's property is owned by
Buckminster Estate, since the days of the Earl of Dysart.
Nearby are many historic houses including Belton House, Harlaxton Manor, Stoke Rochford (training centre of the
National Union of Teachers), and
Belvoir Castle (in Leicestershire).
Transport
Grantham railway station is served by the
East Coast Main Line (between the stops for Peterborough railway station and Newark North Gate railway station),
Grantham to Skegness Line, and
Liverpool to Norwich Line. The town has the A1 road main road from London to
Edinburgh running past it (the town was bypassed in 1962). The main shopping High Street, until recently, was part of the busy
A52 road (which runs to nearby Nottingham), and
Wharf Road and
London Road (next to J Sainsbury) still are. There is a motorway-style service station at the north end of the bypass, on the roundabout. This roundabout is in the process of being circumvented by a new junction.
Sport
Grantham Town Football Club is the local football team, currently playing in the Unibond First Division South. The major claim to fame of
Grantham Town F.C. (nicknamed 'The Gingerbreads') is that Martin O'Neill started his management path from there. The club was founded in 1874 and they currently play in the 7,500 capacity (covered 1,950, seats 750) South Kesteven Sports Stadium (although average attendances are well below capacity). The ground also doubles as the town's athletics stadium (one of only three in Lincolnshire), next to the Grantham Meres Leisure Centre on
Trent Road.
Notable people
- In the Domesday Book of William the Conqueror, Grantham is mentioned as "Graeg Ham". In the opinion of some historians, this might point to its being the home of the ancestors of Clan Graham in Scotland, including several of the most well-known people in Scottish history.
- Two world-famous people associated with the town are:
- mathematician and physicist Sir Isaac Newton, who was educated at the still existing The King's School, Grantham
- Conservative MP and prime minister (1979-1990) Margaret Thatcher, who attended the Kesteven and Grantham Girls' School (K.G.G.S). Born in Grantham, Mrs Thatcher is still remembered personally by many inhabitants of the town.
- William Stukeley (1687-1765), archeologist, was a doctor in Grantham 1726-30.
- Eric Chappell, writer of many 1970s and 80s television sitcoms, including Rising Damp, Only When I Laugh and Duty Free (TV series) comes from Grantham and still lives in village two miles outside of the town.
- Graham Fellows of The Shuttleworths lives nearby, having previously lived near Louth, Lincolnshire.
- Des Lynam lived there with his mistress, Harriet Hopkins, from 2005 until 2006.
- Johnny Downes Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) (1920-2004) - BBC producer who created the first live childrens TV programme, Crackerjack, in 1955 and also Basil Brush in 1968.
Others:
- Graham Lewis - musician.
- Jessie Lipscomb - sculptress.
- Nicholas Maw - composer.
- Richard Nooky Nauyokas - from ITV's Bad Lads Army.
- Nicholas Parsons - TV and radio presenter.
References
External links
- Priory FM - Grantham's local radio station
- Description of the town & street photographs.
- History of Ruston & Hornsby.
- Grantham Town Football Club.
- Grantham Town Youth Football Club.
- South West Lincolnshire
- Grantham Archery Club
- Grantham College
Video clips
- Proposal for new bypass
- Kelvin MacKenzie tours Grantham Museum
{{infobox UK place||country = England|latitude= 52.9182|longitude= -0.6382|official_name= Grantham|population = 34,592|shire_district=
South Kesteven|region= East Midlands|constituency_westminster= [Grantham and Stamford (UK Parliament constituency)|post_town= GRANTHAM|postcode_district = NG31|postcode_area= NG|dial_code= 01476|os_grid_reference= SK915365|london_distance= 110 mi (177 km) Boxing the compass|map_type=Lincolnshire
-->
Grantham is a market town within the
South Kesteven district of
Lincolnshire, England. Located along the course of the
River Witham, twenty-four miles (39 km) to the south-southwest of the city of Lincoln, Lincolnshire, it has a total resident population of 34,592.
The town is best known as the birthplace and childhood home of former prime minister Margaret Thatcher, and as the place where Isaac Newton went to school. The town is situated within short walking distance of an ancient
Roman road, and was the scene of Oliver Cromwell's first advantage over Cavaliers during the English Civil War. Grantham is also notable for having the first female
Law enforcement in the United Kingdom officers in the United Kingdom, who began their role together on November 27 1914, during the
First World War. Miss Mary Allen and Miss E. F. Harburn reported for duty on the
beat. Mary Allen was a former suffragette and had been previously arrested outside the British House of Commons, and later went on to be the commandant of the UK's women's police force, from the 1920s up to 1940. She helped to set up women's police forces in other countries, including
Germany. Edith Smith had the first powers of arrest from August 1915.
Geography and administration
Grantham once lay within the ancient Loveden
Wapentake in the Soke of Grantham in the Parts of
Kesteven.
Political representation
Politically the town is part of the Grantham and Stamford (UK Parliament constituency) constituency and is represented in Parliament by Labour Party (UK)
Member of Parliament (MP)
Quentin Davies. Davies had been elected to the seat as a member of the Conservative Party (UK) before crossing the floor to join Labour Party (UK); the constituency has a long history of electing
Conservative Party (UK) members of Parliament.
The local authority - South Kesteven District Council - is currently
Conservative Party (UK) led, with the current political spread as 35 Conservative, 15 Independent, 2 Labour and 6 Liberal Democrat councillors.
History
Etymology
The origin of the name "Grantham" is uncertain, though is said to probably be Old English language "Granta+ham", meaning "River Cam's village", and appeared as early as 1086 in the Domesday Book in its present form of Grantham.Mills, A.D. (1991)
"A Dictionary of English Place-Names," Oxford University Press.
Prehistory
Late neolithic vessels from a burial were found at Little Gonerby, in the north of the town, in 1875. MAY Jeffrey (1976)
Prehistoric Lincolnshire page 84, published by History of Lincolnshire Committee
Military history
During the famous
Dambusters Royal Air Force (RAF) mission in May 1943, the
RAF Bomber Command's
No. 5 Group RAF and the operation HQ, as Barnes Wallis nervously learnt the grim news, was in
St Vincents, a building which later housed a district council planning department. It was built by Richard Hornsby & Sons in 1865, lived in by Richard Hornsby's son, and is now a private house. In 1944 (including D-Day), this was the headquarters for the USAAF's
Ninth Air Force's
IX Troop Carrier Command , being known as Grantham Lodge. RAF Spitalgate trained pilots in the war, and was not an operational base.
Industrial history
In 1905,
Richard Hornsby & Sons of Grantham (founded 1815) invented the revolutionary caterpillar track, for use with Hornsby's
oil engines; these engines were invented by
Herbert Akroyd Stuart, from which Hot bulb engine principle the diesel engine also evolved, being manufactured in Grantham from July 8th 1892. In 1909, Hornsbys showed the British Army their invention, who were bemused, but took the idea no further than that, although they subsequently bought four caterpillar tractors in 1910 to tow artillery. A short time later, Hornsbys sold the patent for the
caterpillar track in 1914 to The Holt Manufacturing Company of California, USA for $8,000, having only sold one caterpillar tractor commercially. Hornsby's design was far ahead of anything else around at the time. Thanks to the ownership of the patent, this company would become the world-dominating
Caterpillar Inc. Tractor Company.
Benjamin Holt even claimed to be the real inventor. In December 1914, the
British Army's Colonel
Ernest Dunlop Swinton saw one of Holt's caterpillar tractors towing a piece of artillery, and realised its literally ground-breaking role as an attack vehicle. One year later the tank was born (utilising Hornsby's initial designs), being made in nearby
Lincoln, Lincolnshire by
William Foster & Co. Ltd. It first saw action at the Battle of Flers-Courcelette on 15 September 1916. In 1918 Hornsbys amalgamated with Rustons and the company became Ruston and Hornsby.
Aveling & Porter of Rochester, Kent, Kent, would join with Barford & Perkins of
Peterborough to become
Aveling-Barford Ltd in 1934, largely due to financial help from
Ruston & Hornsby. The new company took a former site of Hornsbys, naming it the '
Invicta (motto)' works, which is from the motto on the coat of arms of
Kent, and translates as 'unconquered'. It did not fare well with the sinking market for large dumper trucks and road rollers, and now as Barford Construction Equipment, it makes
dumpers for construction sites, being owned by Wordsworth Holdings Public limited company, owned by the entrepreneur Duncan Wordsworth. A trailer company, Crane-Fruehauf, has moved into part of the factory, from its former home of Dereham, when it went into receivership in early 2005.
British Manufacturing and Research Company (or
BMARC), on
Springfield Road, made munitions for many years. It was owned by the Swiss company, Oerlikon, until 1988 then became part of Astra Holdings PLC, and was bought by BAE Systems in 1992 who then closed the site.
The food processing industry now employs the largest contingent of Grantham's citizens, including Fenland Foods (part of Northern Foods) on the Earlesfield Industrial Estate, Moypark (formerly Padley) in Gonerby Hill Foot, and a large Frozen food factory (PAS) near
Easton, Lincolnshire. The
Woodland Trust is based on
Dysart Road. There is a small FM transmitter near the town's bypass on
Gorse Lane from which
BBC Radio Lincolnshire can be heard on 104.7 and
Lincs FM on 96.7.
Landmarks
The main local landmark is the impressive parish church of Wulfram of Sens, which has the List of tallest churches in the world (282 ft) among English churches, and is also home to the country's first public library. In 1598, Francis Trigge Chained Library, the rector of Welbourn gave £100 for a small library of books for the clergy and
literate laity of Grantham. Two hundred and fifty of the original volumes remain and are kept in the parish church.
Grantham is home to the world's only 'living' pub sign: a beehive of South African
African bee perched in a tree since 1830.
Edith Smith Way is the name of the road outside the Guildhall Arts Centre, parallel to
St Peter's Hill. The Angel & Royal Hotel is one of Britain's oldest inns.
John of England held court there in
1213, when the site used to be a hostel for the Knights Templar. The George Hotel nearby (known as St Peter's Place in 1992, then became the George Shopping Centre) was mentioned in
Charles Dickens’ novel Nicholas Nickleby. Also in the town is the Blue Pig. Much of the town's property is owned by Buckminster Estate, since the days of the Earl of Dysart.
Nearby are many historic houses including Belton House,
Harlaxton Manor,
Stoke Rochford (training centre of the National Union of Teachers), and Belvoir Castle (in Leicestershire).
Transport
Grantham railway station is served by the
East Coast Main Line (between the stops for Peterborough railway station and
Newark North Gate railway station),
Grantham to Skegness Line, and
Liverpool to Norwich Line. The town has the
A1 road main road from London to
Edinburgh running past it (the town was bypassed in 1962). The main shopping High Street, until recently, was part of the busy A52 road (which runs to nearby Nottingham), and
Wharf Road and
London Road (next to
J Sainsbury) still are. There is a motorway-style service station at the north end of the bypass, on the roundabout. This roundabout is in the process of being circumvented by a new junction.
Sport
Grantham Town Football Club is the local football team, currently playing in the Unibond First Division South. The major claim to fame of
Grantham Town F.C. (nicknamed 'The Gingerbreads') is that Martin O'Neill started his management path from there. The club was founded in 1874 and they currently play in the 7,500 capacity (covered 1,950, seats 750) South Kesteven Sports Stadium (although average attendances are well below capacity). The ground also doubles as the town's athletics stadium (one of only three in Lincolnshire), next to the Grantham Meres Leisure Centre on
Trent Road.
Notable people
- In the Domesday Book of William the Conqueror, Grantham is mentioned as "Graeg Ham". In the opinion of some historians, this might point to its being the home of the ancestors of Clan Graham in Scotland, including several of the most well-known people in Scottish history.
- Two world-famous people associated with the town are:
- mathematician and physicist Sir Isaac Newton, who was educated at the still existing The King's School, Grantham
- Conservative MP and prime minister (1979-1990) Margaret Thatcher, who attended the Kesteven and Grantham Girls' School (K.G.G.S). Born in Grantham, Mrs Thatcher is still remembered personally by many inhabitants of the town.
- William Stukeley (1687-1765), archeologist, was a doctor in Grantham 1726-30.
- Eric Chappell, writer of many 1970s and 80s television sitcoms, including Rising Damp, Only When I Laugh and Duty Free (TV series) comes from Grantham and still lives in village two miles outside of the town.
- Graham Fellows of The Shuttleworths lives nearby, having previously lived near Louth, Lincolnshire.
- Des Lynam lived there with his mistress, Harriet Hopkins, from 2005 until 2006.
- Johnny Downes Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) (1920-2004) - BBC producer who created the first live childrens TV programme, Crackerjack, in 1955 and also Basil Brush in 1968.
Others:
- Graham Lewis - musician.
- Jessie Lipscomb - sculptress.
- Nicholas Maw - composer.
- Richard Nooky Nauyokas - from ITV's Bad Lads Army.
- Nicholas Parsons - TV and radio presenter.
References
External links
- Priory FM - Grantham's local radio station
- Description of the town & street photographs.
- History of Ruston & Hornsby.
- Grantham Town Football Club.
- Grantham Town Youth Football Club.
- South West Lincolnshire
- Grantham Archery Club
- Grantham College
Video clips
- Proposal for new bypass
- Kelvin MacKenzie tours Grantham Museum
Grantham On Line
Information about the area including accommodation, attractions, local news, events, community information and local businesses.
Grantham College - Homepage
Further and higher education college, offering vocational and academic courses. Includes course directory, information about the college, its facilities and its student services ...
Grantham College - Homepage
Latest News 'Can't Read, Can't Write' Teacher and Inspirational Mountaineer at College Conference; yes and Autism Care mean business; Event rewards learner success; High-flying ...
Grantham Journal: News, Sport, Jobs, Property, Cars, Entertainments ...
News, sport, business news in your local area ... Prince William of Gloucester Barracks, Somerby Hill, Grantham, 0115 957 3360.
Grantham Town Official Website - The Gingerbreads
The official site with news, club information, statistics, history, links, and a message board.
Grantham VLE
InfoTrac Newspaper and Academic Journals database. Requires Athens account for off-campus use.
Reel Cinemas: official website
Welcome to Reel Cinemas, your local independent cinema! Choose your local cinema from the list below.
DSA - Grantham
Driving Test Centre ... Grantham Driving Test Centre. Cecil Street Grantham Lincolnshire NG31 9AQ. Additional Details
Official Grantham Town Website
The Official website of Grantham Town Football Club ... Grantham Town and Lincoln City today dotted the i’s and crossed the t’s on a deal to take Sam Mullarkey to Sincil Bank.
Grantham Canal Home Page
All about the Grantham Canal - Restoration, Recreation, Environmental, Organisations and History. Help us restore this delightful, rural, broad canal and reconnect it to the ...