Fulstow Early History

My Boss at work recently loaned me a book entitled "Fulstow - A History of A Marsh Village" by The Fulstow History Group, 2001. Fulstow is a small village near Louth and they have much in common. Here are a few tidbits concerning general early village life, and changes up to the mid 1900's. Hope you find it as interesting as I did. Larger blocks of information have separate posts, which, for ease, can also be accessed via hyperlink.

Click here for map of the area of Fulstow and Louth.

Early roots

pg 9. "...main occupation of the day was saltmaking ... this industry ... was extremely large ..."

pg 11. "Lawbreakers would often have to suffer the humiliation of being put in the villages stocks. The use of stocks as a means of punishment died out after 1830."

pg 13. "Sheep rearing was one of the most important occupations of the Marsh and Wolds. Wool from the Lincolnshire Longwool sheep was highly prized by foreign merchants. They came from all over Europe to Louth via Saltfleet Haven."

pg 13. Mud and Stud Cottages.

pg 14. Canal Trade

pg 14. "... in 1819 the ownership of [Fulstow] had fallen into the hands of a few landowners. The award, drawn up in 1817, shows the main landowners to be Sir Joseph Banks with 693 acres, ......"

pg 16. Brickmaking.

pg 17. "Another essential industry ... was milling. ... an important part of village life throughout the centuries. Everyone took his or her grain to the mill for grinding."

pg 17. Churches and Chapels.

1800's to 1900's

pg 36. "In 1842 there was ... a blacksmith, farrier, nailmaker, three brick makers, a joiner, a wheelwright, a shoemakers and cornmiller ... vicar, schoolmaster and surgeon/registrar ... three shops: grocer, a grocer cum draper and tailor, and a butchers ... two public houses in the village: Lord Nelson and Cross Keys ... a [third] The Ship at Fire Beacon."

pg 36. "By the end of the nineteenth century ... a machine maker, carter and three carriers ... hire a thrashing machine ... Veterinary Surgeon ... Post Office ... Sexton..."

pg 47. "Almost all of Fulstow's houses would have a reasonable size garden attached to their property. Here they would produce much that was required to make life comfortable during the hard winter months. Quite often they would be able to supplement their income by selling surplus produce at the local Markets." (most of the Staples were Market Gardeners!)

pg 48. "... 1920's ... local newspaper ... The Louth Advertiser ..."

pg 23. Schools.

pg 28. Carriers.

pg 29. "The Cross Keys was a favourite halfway house for coaches taking people on excursion from Cleethorpes to Hubbards Hills in Louth."

pg 29. "In 1930 public transport was by the Silver Queen Motor Bus Company daily between Louth and Grimsby."



pg 29. "Public transport in the 1940's ... three buses a day that ran between Fulstow, Louth and Grimsby ... a three-coach steam train ran between Louth and Grimsby daily. This was used by people from Fulstow and pupils who went to the Grammar School in Louth. The railway closed to passengers in 1963."

WWI

pg 56. "A Zeppelin was sighted over the village ... on its way to Grimsby."

WWII

pg 57. "... Lancaster Bombers ... would circle over Fulstow to gain height before setting off for their targets in Germany ..."

pg 57. "... German plane dropped a land mine on a field at Manor Farm ..."

pg 57. "... 1942 a JU 88 was shot down at North Thoresby. The pilot was killed."

pg 57. "[23 Dec] 1943 [two] Lancaster bombers [collided] over the north side of the village ... flying at ... 12,000 feet ... both crews were killed and the wreckage was spread over a large area of the Marsh."

pg 58. "...various Prisoners of War. Italian prisoners worked on the land at Waingrove Farm. The German prisoners were brought from nearby Donna Nook to work on the land too."