Travelling over the Humber Bridge to the south bank of the estuary, we find this fascinating town of two halves.
We first look at the town centre that stands about 3/4 mile from the foreshore - this is where the chalk of the Lincolnshire Wolds rises from the clay of the estuary. A lovely market town on an 'H' type plan: the town dates back to Roman times who used the inlet to transport goods, but came into its own in the 6th century when St Chad baptised locals in a pool.
Two churches stand looking across from one another: St Peter's dates from 970 AD and St Mary's from about 1115 when St Peter's became a monastic church belonging to Bardney Abbey.
The town has two museums: Baysgarth House (circa 1620) houses a local museum and the Wilderspin School is dedicated to the eductionalist Samuel Wildersping who had the school built in 1844. It is the only surviving one of a around 2,000 he established in England.
The haven is a car ride away. The old ropeworks, now an art gallery, is in Tesco's car park! Behind stands the moderb Waters' Edge Visitor Centre. The Viking Way, long distance path, passes under the Humber Bridge and from here you can access the Old Tile Works and Far Ings Nature Reserve. The nature resrve is a series of old clay pits, dug for bricks and tiles, which were fired at one of 13 works along the bank here. One, the Hoe Hill works, remains operational.
27 авг 2024
