Alkborough - North Lincolnshire

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Alkborough, North Lincolnshire

Introduction

This is the second of my articles about civil parishes. It will be expanded as further information and photographs are available. The photographs so far are by Gordon Kneale Brooke, Steve Parker, Martin Wilson, and David Wright.

The grid square of the village is SE8821. A map showing the civil parish boundary is here: Link

This article was last edited 7 Jan 07.

History

The spelling in Domesday Book was Alchebarge. It was held partly by the Archbishop of Peterborough and partly by Ivo Tailbois.

Alkborough is an ancient parish that was in Manley Wapentake, and later in Glanford Brigg Rural District in the Administrative County of Lindsey. In 1974 it became part of the Glanford District of Humberside County, which became, with Scunthorpe District, North Lincolnshire Unitary Authority when Humberside County was abolished in 1996.

There was an enclosure award c.1765.

The population was 345 in 1801, peaked at 528 in 1841 and was 454 in 1991.

Geography

Alkborough village lies on a ridge that has a steep escarpment to the west, down to the River Trent, and a shallow eastern slope down to Halton Drain. The escarpment is formed of Triassic mudstone, and the ridge and land to the east are on shale of the Lower lias in the Jurassic system. The north-western part of the parish is low-lying land adjacent to the River Trent and River Humber. This is alluvium, and was fertile farmland protected by embankments. However on 11 September 2006 the embankment was deliberately breached in order to provide storage for floodwater. The scheme will also provide a new wetland habitat, with seasonal grazing, which is to be designated as a National Nature Reserve. See also under the 'Alkborough Flats heading below.

List of Routes

Alkborough is explored in this article by following routes as follows:

1. Front Street;

2. Back Street;

3. Bridleway along 'The Cliff';

4. Walcot Road;

5. West Halton Lane;

6. Whitton Road;

7. Alkborough Flats

#1 Front Street

This is the main street of the village.
SE881218 St John the Baptist's Church – This was founded in 1052, and has a Saxon tower, except for the top stage which was added in the 14C or 15C. The west door is round-headed, in the Saxon style. The belfry was originally in the second stage behind double openings with arched tops, but is now in the third stage with tall double openings of 13C type. The arch between tower and nave incorporates Roman stones. The nave arcades are of the 12C, but the aisles were rebuilt in the 14C. The south doorway to the nave is in Early English style, highly decorated. The chancel, vestry and porch were added or rebuilt when the church was restored by J.O.Scott in 1887. The chancel roof has a steeper pitch and higher ridge than that of the nave. In the porch, which is built of timber, a model in iron of the turf maze (Julian's Bower) is set into the stone floor, and is also depicted in a stained-glass window in the chancel. The bowl of the font is Norman; it is supported on a 19C column resting on a medieval base.



Also in imagesofengland: IoE link

In the churchyard there is a grotesquely weathered cross of gritstone. Part of the wear has been caused by the sharpening of blades. See imagesofengland: IoE link

SE881216 The former Wesleyan Chapel was built on the west side of the road in 1840, with a front of grey brick, grey at the front with details in stucco including arches over the three first-floor windows, a ring motif over the outer windows and a date plaque over the central one. Also onion-dome finials on the kneeler at each side of the gable-end. The sides of the building are of yellow brick.



The Primitive Methodists built a chapel in 1864, almost opposite the Wesleyan one. This was not shown on the 1 map of 1962. Does the building still exist? This photograph from imagesofengland might be of it IoE link ; although illustrating the entry for the Wesleyan Chapel, it does not correspond to the description in the text. Unfortunately the ground-floor of the front has been mutilated by the insertion of a garage door.

Providence Cottage was built in the 18C or earlier, but was altered in the 19C to provided a higher roof-line and extensions to the right and rear. The datestone is inscribed 'Providence Cottage GF 1829'. See: IoE link

#2 Back Street

SE880217 Julian's Bower is a circular medieval turf maze, 12m in diameter. It is thought to have been cut around the year 1200 by Benedictine monks who lived locally. The monastic cell was an offshoot of the Monastery at Spalding, and was closed in 1220.

This is the entrance, which is also the start of the bridleway along The Cliff.



The maze and the information plaque:



SE879216 Countess Close is a square earthwork with sides 90m long, with an entrance on the north side. Some think this a Roman camp, others consider it to be medieval, possibly monastic.

SE881218 A view of Back Street looking towards the church.



The Tower House – a three-storey house that looks to have been imported from a town. It has an elaborate bay window.



The Coronation Club - Alkborough does not have a pub and this club presumably fills a niche.

#3 Bridleway along 'The Cliff'

This route starts in the village, at Julian's Bower, and passes through woodland with views over the Trent.

SE8720 The Cliff, from the River Trent. Cliff is perhaps an exaggeration, but it is certainly steep compared to the flat land to the west of the Trent.



SE879215 This footpath runs SE from the bridleway along The Cliff towards the cemetery.



SE876211 The bridleway here is a broad track that has been used for plant working on the floodwater storage scheme. This traffic turned right off the bridleway on a track down the escarpment, as seen in the second photograph. Beyond the junction we are back to a quiet bridleway.



SE8720 The Cliff, from Walcot.



SE873207 At Kell Well flint arrowheads and other implements of the Neolithic period (4000BC-2351BC) including a stone axehead have been picked up. The water, which comes from the Lias rock, is rich in iron salts. The stream descends the escarpment in a series of small waterfalls.

#4 Walcot Road

This road goes along the ridge southwards towards Burton upon Stather.

SE880214 The churchyard had become full, and a new cemetery was made in 1905 on land donated by James Goulton-Constable.

SE877211 Walcot Hall is a mid-Georgian country house built for Thomas Goulton. It has a five-bay front and a big Doric porch, possibly a 19C addition, with an iron balustrade. The outer windows o the front and back of each side are two-storey canted bays. The grounds and gardens round the hall were laid out and planted in 1800. The Abbey of Peterborough had at one time a chapel and burial ground in Walcot.



SE879209 Walcot Old Hall (Manor Farmhouse) An L-shaped house of red-brick, in mid-17C Artisan Mannerist style, restored c.1980. The windows have mullions and transoms of rendered brick. , ground and first floor windows (and door) vertically bound together. Ground-floor windows and door have brick pediments, and a pediment also at top of centre bay. Details in cut brick, pantile roof. See: IoE link

Peel Cottage, Walcot is an estate cottage built, of coursed limestone rubble with brick dressings and a pantile hipped roof, in the early 19C for the Goulton Estate. See: IoE link

At SE877204 a track leads to a copse called Walks End, and from here two power lines keep company for many kilometres eastwards until the one on the left goes to a power station at North Killingholme and the other to Immingham.



Another photograph of the two power lines looking westwards from the eastern edge of SE8820. They cross the River Trent, then turn to the south.



Coleby Wood is alongside the road at SE872194. It was presumably the wood in which the inhabitants of Coleby had commoner's rights. The hamlet of Coleby is just in West Halton parish, but it was a vill in Domesday Book, so perhaps its territory was split between West Halton and Alkborough when it ceased to be a township. This photograph was taken from the east.



Soon after the road crosses the boundary into Burton in Stather, a bridleway leads off the the east, and this is the view northwards from, at SE 885 193. This name is Willow Stumps on the 6 map of 1889 on old-maps.co.uk. The stumps seem to have been on the parish boundary, and were perhaps along a ditch that by 1889 was no longer at the edge of the field but a little way south of it.

#5 West Halton Lane

This road goes eastwards from the village towards West Halton.

SE883215 Windmill Tower was built of red brick in the early 19C. It has four storeys, with steps to the entrance. There are two windows to each storey, with segmental arches, and there is a stepped and cogged brick eaves cornice. Roof covering and most floors are missing; surviving internal fittings include three millstones in situ on the first floor.


For another view see: IoE link

#6 Whitton Road

This road goes north-eastwards from the village towards Whitton. This road was constructed across one of the open fields of Alkborough in 1768, when the fields were enclosed. It met a similar road in Whitton, and there is the characteristic kink at the boundary where the roads meet.

SE882218 A track goes behind the church to Prospect Farm, then north-westwards onto Alkborough Flats – see heading below.

SE883219 Huteson Lane goes off to the east , and becomes a field path to Whitton Road, West Halton.

SE884219 Alkborough School. The buildings probably incorporate the National School that was built to accommodate 120 children in 1874. There was an influx of pupils from Whitton when that school closed on 8 Jan 1943. This was supposed to be a temporary wartime closure due to a shortage of teachers, but the school never re-opened.



SE885221 The Old Vicarage.

SE886223 Bales of straw (?) stored at the side of a farm track, getting wet.



SE 886 224 The road gradually descends through arable land. This view is looking SW back towards the village.



SE890208 A lane leads NW to a gate at SE 888 229 This was the lane to Flatts Farm (formerly Alkborough Flats Farm) which has been demolished, and the lane now ends abruptly.



SE 891 231 Pete's pig – Up a farm track to the NW from Whitton Road, with an upside-down caravan and a collection of scrap in the background.

#7 Alkborough Flats

SE8723 The source of the Humber, at the confluence of the Ouse and the Trent.



SE8623 Alkborough Flats and Trent Falls.



SE 865 223 The breach in the flood defences. The embankment was deliberately breached on 11 September 2006 as part of the Alkborough Flats Project. This will create 440 hectares of new intertidal habitats adjacent to the Humber Estuary on an area of agricultural land. Existing flood defences which have protected the site since the 1950s are being removed to allow water back on to the land. A key objective of the project is to transform the present arable land into new grassland and estuary habitats to be managed by grazing to enhance biodiversity. The project at Alkborough is intended to deliver new areas of habitat to compensate for losses of habitat from the Natura 2000 site resulting from sea level rise. In addition there are major benefits in reducing extreme water levels in the estuary and tidal rivers resulting from this project.



SE8722 This picture shows work in progress on the flood defence scheme, taken on 18 August 2005.



SE8722 This picture shows flooding on Alkborough Flats, following the recent inauguration of the new flood defence ('managed retreat') scheme. Taken on 26 September 2006.



SE8723 Still no photograph in this square as at 7 Jan 07. It would be interesting to have a photograph of Flats Farm, and one on the site of the farm now that it has been demolished.

SE881236 The Clough is an inlet with a sluice used to drain water from Alkborough Flats into the River Humber. Just to the west of it there is a navigation beacon. Here are three photographs:

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