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Great Steeping

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“GREAT STEEPING, a parish in the Wold division of Candleshoe wapentake, parts of Lindsey, county Lincoln, 3 miles S.E. of Spilsby, its post town, and about 1 mile from the Firsby railway station. The village is situated on the river Steeping, which flows from the Wolds 15 miles S.E. to Boston Deeps, beyond Wainfleet. The parish includes the hamlet of Monksthorpe, as also part of an ancient moated seat. The surface is flat, and the soil clayey. The living is a vicarage annexed to the rectory of Firsby, in the diocese of Lincoln. The church, dedicated to All Saints, was partly rebuilt in 1748. The register dates from 1613. The charities consist of allotments and some poor's cottages. A school was erected at the expense of T. Watson, Esq., of Bitteswell, which is principally supported by the vicar. The Wesleyans have a chapel, and the Baptists one at Monksthorpe. Lord Willoughby d'Eresby is lord of the manor.

"MONKSTHORPE, a hamlet in the parish of Great Steeping, Wold division of the hundred of Candleshoe, parts of Lindsey, county Lincoln, 3 miles S.E. of Spilsby."

from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland - 1868

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Census

  • The parish was in the Spilsby sub-district of the Spilsby Registration District.
  • Check our Census Resource page for county-wide resources.
  • The table below gives census piece numbers, where known:
Census
Year
Piece No.
1851H.O. 107 / 2109
1861R.G. 9 / 2374
1871R.G. 10 / 3391
1891R.G. 12 / 2603
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Church History

  • The Anglican parish church is dedicated to All Saints.
  • The church was partially rebuilt in 1748 and restored in 1908.
  • A new All Saints Church was built in 1891 of red brick with stone facings.
  • The Diocese of Lincoln declared this church redundant in August, 1973.
  • There is a photograph of All Saints church on the Wendy PARKINSON Church Photos web site.
  • Here is a photo of All Saints Church, taken by Ron COLE (who retains the copyright):

 

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  • Here is a photo of the old All Saints Church, taken by Ron COLE (who retains the copyright):

 

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Church Records

  • The Anglican parish register dates from 1711.
  • The Lincolnshire FHS has published several marriage indexes and a burial index for the Bolingbroke Deanery to make your search easier.
  • A Wesleyan Methodist chapel and a Baptist chapel were built here in the hamlet of Monksthorpe.
  • David HITCHBORNE has a photograph of the Wesleyan Chapel on Geo-graph, taken in 2007.
  • The Historic Baptist Church at Monksthorpe - Much detail there re gravestones etc
  • Richard CROFT has a photograph of the Baptist Chapel in Monksthorpe on Geo-graph, taken in 2009.
  • For information and assistance in researching these chapels, see our non-conformist religions page.
  • Check our Church Records page for county-wide resources.
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Civil Registration

  • The parish was in the Spilsby sub-district of the Spilsby Registration District.
  • Check our Civil Registration page for sources and background on Civil Registration which started in July, 1837.
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Description & Travel

Great Steeping is a parish 123 miles north of London, 3 miles east-south-east of Spilsby and west of Skegness. Halton Holgate parish lies to the west. The parish includes the hamlet of Monksthorpe and covers about 1,750 acres.

Great Steeping village lies north and east of the Steeping River (also known as The River Limb). If you are considering a visit to the parish:

  • Take the B1195 trunk road east out of Spilsby.
  • See our touring page for more sources.
You can see pictures of Great Steeping which are provided by:

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Gazetteers

The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland - 1868

"GREAT STEEPING, a parish in the Wold division of Candleshoe wapentake, parts of Lindsey, county Lincoln, 3 miles S.E. of Spilsby, its post town, and about 1 mile from the Firsby railway station. The village is situated on the river Steeping, which flows from the Wolds 15 miles S.E. to Boston Deeps, beyond Wainfleet. The parish includes the hamlet of Monksthorpe, as also part of an ancient moated seat. The surface is flat, and the soil clayey. The living is a vicarage annexed to the rectory of Firsby, in the diocese of Lincoln. The church, dedicated to All Saints, was partly rebuilt in 1748. The register dates from 1613. The charities consist of allotments and some poor's cottages. A school was erected at the expense of T. Watson, Esq., of Bitteswell, which is principally supported by the vicar. The Wesleyans have a chapel, and the Baptists one at Monksthorpe. Lord Willoughby d'Eresby is lord of the manor.

"MONKSTHORPE, a hamlet in the parish of Great Steeping, Wold division of the hundred of Candleshoe, parts of Lindsey, county Lincoln, 3 miles S.E. of Spilsby."

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Maps

  • See our "Maps" page for additional resources.

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference TF440644 (Lat/Lon: 53.157168, 0.151663), Great Steeping which are provided by:

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Military History

  • David HITCHBORNE has a photograph of the War Memorial for World War I in the churchyard on Geo-graph, taken in 2004.
  • The RAF built an airfield here during World War II and it opened for action on 20 Sept. 1943 as a satellite airfield to RAF East Kirkby. It soon became a full station in its own right under the name "RAF Spilsby".
  • Wikipedia tells us that "In 1944 a Spilsby based 207 Squadron airman, Flying Officer Denys Street was one of the real escapees from the German prisoner of war camp Stalag Luft III and was one of the fifty executed by the Gestapo in the aftermath of the mass escape that was later filmed as The Great Escape."
  • On the 10th of April, 1944, an accident in a fusing shed caused a 1,000 lb bomb to explode, killing 10 men. This incident is memorialized in the RAF Spilsby Memorial.
  • Peter SKYNNER has a photograph of the RAF Spilsby Memorial on Geo-graph, taken in 2012. The memorial is located in Great Steeping at the site of a bomb dump.
  • He also has a photograph of the Memorial plaque on Geo-graph, taken in 2012.
  • The airfield was closed in 1946 and placed on "care and maintenance." The airfield saw some use in the Cold War period after the Korean War, but was eventually torn up in the late 1970s.
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Military Records

For a close-up of the Great Steeping War Memorial and a list of the names from WWI, see the Roll of Honour site.

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Politics & Government

  • The parish was in the Wold division of the ancient Candleshoe Wapentake in the East Lindsey district in the parts of Lindsey.
  • Kelly's 1900 Directory of Lincolnshire lists the parish, perhaps erroneously, as being in the South Lindsey division of the county.
  • For today's district governance, see the East Lindsey District Council.
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Poor Houses, Poor Law

  • Bastardy cases would be heard in the Spilsby petty session hearings every other Monday.
  • As a result of the 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act, the parish became part of the Spilsby Poor Law Union.
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Population

YearInhabitants
1801207
1831261
1841285
1851343
1871340
1881266
1891225
1911225
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Schools

  • A Public Elementary School was built here in 1859 to hold 60 students.
  • The parish formed a school board in August, 1876.
  • For more on researching school records, see our Schools Research page.