| Dan Entwisle |
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The spinney was a collection of tall trees on Green Lane. It bordered Bluecoast school play ground.
Sometime - I guess 1981 - it was cut down and cleared. Then later in the year, we kids at Bluecoat were invited to help plant new trees there.
I vaguely recall coming back to Stamford sometime in the late 1980s to find it had been cleared again - then on returning a couple of years ago, it appears to have been replanted.
So, anyone know anything about the Spinney? Was it part of a bigger wood? Why was it cleared only to be re-planted? Did it get cleared again?
I'd love to know the story behind the place.
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| syd |
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Dan, that coppice was known as Corporation Coppice in the 19th century, to us Essex Roaders it was always The Spinney, spent many an hour playing there. There is a web site old-maps.co.uk you can find lots of interesting bits about Stamford.
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| Patrick |
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I think those of us who spent our boyhood in the area have fond memories of The Spinney. I don`t know why it was cleared as I was not in Stamford at the time - Dutch Elm disease? Clem came up with the interesting fact that it marked an old burial ground which I hadn`t heard before.
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| Mike Laughton |
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Somebody must be psychic! I was only thinking about this the other day when a jackdaw flew into my garden. I'm 68 years old and still have difficulty telling the difference between a rook, a raven, a jackdaw and a crow.
If the spinney you're referring to is the one with the tall trees that stood behind the prefabs across the road from the old Fane School, I seem to recall they housed the most famous rookery in the town.
Many years have passed but I seem to remember there were dozens of nests high up in the trees. I thought they were great but I bet the mums living in the area prayed the birds didn't fly over while her washing was on the line.
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| Gillian Hendy |
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I remember this as a child. There were no houses, no Queen Eleanor nothing. You could walk down the narrow track to the bottom of the hill and then up over the fields to the farm house if you felt that energetic. I remember though once you got to the bottom you could walk sort of north east and come to a lovely Spinney. I had many a lovely walk there with my mother.
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| Clem Walden |
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Hi Mike, your mention of jackdaws reminded me about Raymond Stubbs (Ike) who captured a jackdaw and kept it as a pet. He would be seen at times with this pet on his shoulder one of this birds legs tethered by string and held in Iks hand so it could not fly away. He told me at the time he was trying to teach this jackdaw to speak. Do you remember him? The spinney was my play area beore the prefabs and after along with most others that lived within the area at the time, Syds referal to the Corporation Coppice is correct. And as you say the old spinney house Stamfords most well known rookery. Harry Skells who lived in Kings Road at the time told us boys the spinney was once a buriel ground, I am not sure if this was fact? And thought at the time he only told us this in the hopes of preventing our gang playing there? Thinking back about [Ike and his jackdaw] I wonderd what would be peoples reactions today seeing a young boy with a wild bird tethered by string? On reflection it was rather cruel. But at the time I did not think so. Perhaps when one is only a very boy such acts of cruelty are not seen as such.
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| Clem walden |
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Hi Gillian, think perhaps you are refering to a different spinney to others in this forum. The spinney you make reference too would seem perhaps to be sited within Wheatleys or Wooleys farm fields? as you mention at the bottom of the track [Green Lane] North and East. There were were no houses or Queen Eleanor as you state just all open fields. But at the top end of Green Lane was the [Fane School] the spinney others refer to was directly opposite and had piggeries on one side of it. On the right and approximatley fifty yards above the Fane School was a very large water tower [sort of on stilts] When walking down Green lane one came to the fence at the bottom looking straight in front on the left was Wheatleys farm fields that housed the old pond which was surrounded by trees. And on the right was Wooleys Farm fields that had a small wooded area to the right.
As a child the Green Lane and the spinney opposite the Fane School were my playgrounds and as you recall the walk down the Green Lane in those days was indeed lovely.
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| Gillian Hendy |
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Hi Clem
I can remember the pigs that were kept opposite where the Fane School was, I was only very small then so it is very hazy.
As for what I remember as being the Green Lane - it started where Queen Eleanor's school is now. There was nothing there then, I think Kesteven Road was there but that is all. You would walk down a small track down the hill, and yes there was pond at the bottom. If you stood there to your right and up a bit (sorry bad description!) there was a spinney. There was also the farm house which was left and up the hill from the pond.
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| Gillian Hendy |
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Hi again Clem
On re-reading your post, I do now remember the Spinney complete the all the rooks that would nest there, and also the water tower too.
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| Patrick |
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Gillian Hendy could well be right. If you walked to the bottom of Green Lane then to the top right hand corner of the field in front of you, then along the hedge running north after two hundred yards you came to a small wood. It was about thirty yards wide and two hundred yards long stopping about two hundred yards short of the Tolethorpe-Belmesthorpe road. It is still there but not very conspicuous because it is back from the road. In my younger misbegotten days it was a great place to pick up a few rabbits because it was quiet and undisturbed. |At the southern end there was a small stream that ran all the year. It was full of watercress in the summer. I believe fetilisers and sprays have now killed it.
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| Gillian Hendy |
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Yes Patrick - that was it. I used to have picnics there with my parents :)
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| syd |
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Patrick, you have it right, in the summer holidays we took our sandwiches and lemonade crystals and went up to the pond, which you could cross over the two willow trees that linked across, we spent a bit of time there then as you say, followed the hedgerow up to the stream, where we would make a dam out of sticks and mud then rip it down and watched the tidal wave wash all the way to the Ryhall Road, then it was up to the spinney, although to us it was the copse, can you remember it tapered to a point at the northern end. I never realised until years later that it was near to the road, we classed it as the end of civilisation as we knew it.
It is not until you reminisce that you realise what a lot has been lost, not only to us, but present day children.
As Clem says, Happy Days.
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| syd |
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Just followed the old green lane trail to the copse on google maps and the copse is still there, it is not tapered as I thought, it is about300 yds long by about 25 yds wide.
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| Clem Walden |
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Hi Syd, was you ever chased by old Wooley the farmer when you visited the copse? the story was he was never happy with youngsters crossing his land from the Green Lane end. We got chased one day and ran like hell, there was a very loud [bang] and old Trott Spencer told us Wooley had a [blunderbuss] I din't stop to find out just kept on running. I dont think I ever visited that copse again. But often ventured up to the old pond that was in Wheatleys fields, thanks for reminding me about the two trees that formed like a bridge over the pond. Green lane as you may remember was just a mud track, Kings Road Tarmac road ended at the Fane School gates. From this point Green lanes mud track began. Spent most of my childhood days playing down Green Lane and in the old spinney. Do you remember the concrete underground water tank within the spinney? It had a couple of cast iron covers on it each about 2ft square one at each end. Its location was directly opposite the old Fane School gates left hand corner. Fond memories no TV-No mobile phones-Bread and dripping sandwiches-Respect-And a good telling off-If you didn't behave. Days of gold one could say.
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| Clem Walden |
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Hi-Patric Gillian was right of course but the spinney and location of the same she refered to in her first posting was a dissimular spinney than that which others were recalling. All memories recalled differ owing to age differences. The spinney you now recall when you were a poacher was the one that Gillian was refering too regarding her fond clildhood memories. Syd refers to this as a copse. But I suppose in real terms a spinney and a copse are the same [just areas of trees and bushes] perhaps the latter [copse or coppice] may be a little different as I am given to understand it sheltered more game for [poachers] I did a little poaching as a young boy and remember getting told off once when I was setting my [piano wire snares] on the various rabbitt runs within the allotments that were then situated behind the end houses [Tolethorpe Square end] bottom of Essex Road. However the telling off never stopped me. Great days-Fond memories.
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| Andrew Matthews |
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I can confirm the date the original Spinney was cut down. It was in January 1981. I had to go into hospital and was off school for almost a month. When I returned in mid January 1981 the Spinney was gone. It looked totally bare up Green Lane and I always think they spoiled the look of the area by cutting it down. It looks ok now but not as natural as it did then - and there was a Rookery in the tall Spinney trees and it was always the first indication of spring coming when the birds returned.
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| Patrick |
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I expect the older ones amongst us will remember the girls from the Mundella School in Nottingham who came to Stamford in 1939 to avoid air raids. I was reading `Stamford Past` by Christopher Davies and came across `Evacuation Rules` written by the Headmaster. There are the usual ones about being well-behaved, clean and tidy, observing the blackout and being polite to their host. What caught my eye was Rule 8: `The small wood opposite the Fane School is out-of-bounds.`
I wonder what danger the Headmaster thought was lurking in The Spinney of which we locals were unaware!
Kate: Anyone out there know the answer? Nice to hear from you Patrick.
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| Clem Walden |
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Hi Patrick, Rule 8 perhaps the Headmaster new the locals and the spinney antics they got up-to? Your mention of evacuees brought back fond childhood memories. During the war and for a year or two after, we had several evacuees staying with us at 3 Tolethorpe Square. I suppose many families in Stamford offered accomodation to these unfortunate individuals during the war years. Must be honest though as a very young child I never liked sleeping three in a bed; with two pairs of feet in my face. But on reflection I did have several new friends to play with and share my bread and dripping sandwiches. Fond memories.
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| Ian |
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Hi Clem
I vividly remember crossing Wheatleys field next to the snake pit with my friend Dave. We were on our way to the stream in the field before the spinney near Little Casterton to Belmesthorpe Road. As we walked John Wooley suddenly appeared from behind the hedge and as we walked towards him pointed his double barrelled shotgun at us and ordered us off "his" land. This was about1968/9. Apparently his father had suicidedly shot himself previously. We were too scared to run!!!
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