Ancestor Gateway Forum - STAMFORD MEMORIES GATEWAY (Lincolnshire England) used as PRIDE and PREJUDICE FILM SET New Topic  |  Search Thread Topic: BONFIRE NIGHTS in the 1950s Topic Originator: Mike Laughton Post Date October 29, 2015 @ 12:58 PM  BONFIRE NIGHTS in the 1950s Mike Laughton October 29, 2015 @ 12:58 PM Reply  |  Email  |  Print  |  Top During the 1950s, before the days of the big organised fireworks displays in the town, Stamford had two main public bonfires; one on the recreation ground and the other on the town meadows. I don't know if these were organised by the old Borough Council (both sites would have been owned by the borough in those days) but certainly members of the public would build up the bonfires in the weeks leading up to November 5th with old unwanted furniture and other combustible items. Several people would make Guys for the bonfires and the public would take their own fireworks and sparklers to the event. Both were always well attended. The event would always be held on November 5th no-matter which day of the week the date fell, unless it was a Sunday in which case the event would be celebrated on Saturday the 4th. The townsfolk were very protective of their two bonfires and woe betide any kid who who tried to set fire to either of the two bonfires before the due date. I think it would have been about 1956 that somebody set the Recreation Ground bonfire alight a few days before Fireworks Night. We came out of school (Stamford Boys Secondary Modern formerly St Michael's) to discover that someone had lit the bonfire. My mate Brian Dunn put the blaze out using one of the school's fire extinguishers. Yorkie, the head master, was not amused and poor old Dunny ended up getting the cane.