The Lincolnshire Society for Encouragement of Ecclesiastical Architecture - the earliest forerunner of SLHA in a direct line of 'ancestry' - held its first annual meeting on 21 November 1844 in Louth.

On 21 November 2019, the 175th anniversary of this auspicious occasion, SLHA Trustees and Executive Committee members met with guests representing local councils and heritage organisations to mark the occasion.

Pearl Wheatley, MBE, SLHA Vice-President and former Chairman, gave a succinct and lively account of the Society's history.

A series of boards displaying the Society's activities and achievements, prepared by Kathy Holland, SLHA Secretary, lined the meeting room (see right). Documents illustrating the work of SLHA were also laid out for inspection.

The speaker at SLHA's monthly meeting in St Hugh's Hall, Lincoln on Wednesday 20 November was Kate Carmichael, Architectural Investigator from Historic England. She is a key player in the forthcoming 5-year Heritage Action Zone project planned for Grimsby.

The town has a large number of redundant industrial and commercial buildings, especially in the Kasbah area around the Fish Dock. Many of the buildings are of considerable interest and architectural merit.

The study of the area and subsequent publications should provide a clear and meaningful basis for future development plans.

Photograph: The Ice Factory and Dock Tower (DB)

Documents and photographs recalling the life of Brenda Webster were displayed in the meeting room at Jews' Court on Friday 18 October.

The collection highlighted key events in her life and reminded friends and former colleagues of her considerable talents and the substantial contribution she made to community life in Heighington and organisations such as SLHA.

The SLHA Awards for 2019 were announced and presented by the Society President Dr Rod Ambler at the Annual General Meeting of the Society at the Guildhall Arts Centre, Grantham on 12 October.

The Flora Murray Award was given to the Wold Newton History Website, edited by David Buckle. The website makes readily accessible an extensive collection of documents and images dealing with all aspects of the village's past.

An Award of Excellence was received by Linda Sproston on behalf of St Andrew's Church, Utterby for the Utterby Heritage Collection. Oral histories, parish documents, church guides, etched glass images and an interactive computer screen - all based at the ever-open church - tell the story of the parish.

Photograph (L to R) : David Buckle (Wold Newton), Rod Ambler (SLHA President), Linda Sproston (Utterby)

As previously reported on the news pages of this website, the reconstruction of Lincoln's Stamp End Railway bridge in August 2017 allowed the retention of the original rare box girders.

An information board about this historic bridge (see right) has recently been erected under the bridge on the south side of the river.

Text and photographs outline the background to the bridge's erection and its significance in the history of bridge building in this country.

The close interest of the Society's Industrial Archaeology group, especially Chris Lester and Eric Newton, has been significant in ensuring this nationally important structure is appropriately recognised.

In early August new signboards produced by Allen Signs of Whisby Road were erected at Jews' Court, one on the wall by the entrance and the other suspended above the pavement.

The hand-painted signs produced over 15 years ago had become very dull and battered. The signs - before and after - are shown below

Adam Cartwright's history of the Grantham Brewer, Mowbray and Co, published in in Volume 19 of the SLHA journal Lincolnshire History and Archaeology has received a Local History Award from the British Association for Local History. Adam was presented with the award at a meeting of BALH in London on 1 June.

This award recognises the painstaking research that Adam regularly invests in a range of Lincolnshire related topics and his skill in marshalling and presenting his material. It also reflects on the high standards set by the editor of LHA, Dave Start, and excellent work of Ros Beevers in typesetting and layout of our journal.

Photograph: Adam Cartwright receiving the award from Professor Caroline Barron, BALH  President.

At the monthly SLHA meeting in St Hugh's Hall on 17 April, Chris Hewis gave an illustrated talk about a remarkable Lincolnshire-born nurse.

Jean Bemrose, born Asterby 1885, trained in Liverpool and served in several English hospitals under the Red Cross. Promoted to sister in 1915, she worked in the St John Ambulance Brigade hospital in the large hospital complex at Etapes, northern France, where she dealt with severely wounded soldiers from the French and Belgian battlefields.

A German bombing raid on the hospital in spring 1918 destroyed the building and, under dangerous conditions, Jean continued to care for her patients with little concern for her own safety. For this she was awarded the Military Medal.

Jean Bemrose retained many items relating to her wartime experiences - including some exceptional photographs - and these have been passed on through her nephew to the Saxilby and District History Society (of which Chris Hewis is chairman).

An Easter Holiday event organised by the Society for families on the popular theme of Tudors took place at Market Rasen Library.

This well attended event offered visitors a selection of activities, one of which was to craft a jester's head in clay. This was inspired by a jester's head which features in the photo galleries on the Society website and is part of the archaeology collections at The Collection in Lincoln.

Additional activities included making a Tudor Rose pendant and finding out the history of the Tudor Rose. Visitors were also able to try their hand at playing Tudor Five Stones in addition to using their imaginations to create a Story Scroll.

Both visitors and staff at Market Rasen Library are keen for the Society to continue to arrange more events for families.

Event organised by Kathy Holland

1269
* Austin Friars established in Lincoln; one of their buildings, Greyfriars, still stands between Broadgate and Free School Lane.

1519
* Katherine Willoughby, 4th wife of the Duke of Suffolk, who lived at Grimsthorpe with her second husband Richard Bertie, born this year (22 March)

1619
* Margaret Flowers, one of the witches of Belvoir, hanged at Lincoln Castle (11 March)
* Thomas, Lord Clinton, alias Fiennes, MP for Lincolnshire between 1604 and 1610 died at Tattershall (15 January)
* The Free Grammar School in Heighington founded by Thomas Garratt for poor children in Heighington, Washingborough and Branston
* Sir Richard Hansard died. He was born in Biscathorpe in 1550 and served with distinction as a soldier in Ireland.

1669
* Birth of Susannah Wesley, mother of John, Charles and 13 other children
* Isaac Newton appointed Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge University at the age of 26
* Land purchased for first Quaker burial ground in Lincoln

1719
* Free school established in East Kirkby by the endowment of Gregory Croft and his wife Margaret (16 May)
* William Banks, father of Sir Joseph Banks, born Revesby
* Donington Grammar School established by Thomas Cowley
* John Landen FRS, mathematician, born Spalding (23 January)
* John Grundy, civil engineer based in Spalding, born Congerstone, Leicestershire. His major works in Lincolnshire include the earth dam at Grimsthorpe Castle and Louth Navigation.
* Sir George Thorold of Harmston became Lord Mayor of London

1769
* Lincoln County Hospital founded near Broadgate Bridge (it moved to Drury Lane in 1777)
* Eresby Hall, Spilsby, home of the Willoughby family, destroyed by fire
* Sir Francis Bernard (1712-1779), one time High Steward of Lincoln and Recorder of Boston, created Ist Baronet Bernard of Nettleham, (5 April) (the baronetcy became extinct 1883)
* Parishes enclosed by Act of Parliament: Atterby, Barnoldby le Beck, Beckingham, Claypole, Ingham, North Hykeham, Snitterby, South Willingham, Sudbrook, Waddingham, Waltham
* Revd William Reckitt was born near Gainsborough. He worked as a weaver in Wainfleet and spent time in America as a missionary.

1819
* James Coultas, agricultural engineer, born Grantham
* Independent chapel, costing £1200, opened in Grove Street, Boston
* Thomas Forman, printer & publisher of the Nottingham Guardian from 1849, born Louth (19 January)
* Maud Foster five-sailed windmill built in Boston for Thomas and Isaac Reckitt of Wainfleet by the Hull millwrights Norman and Smithson at a cost of £1,800
* Lincoln Lunatic Asylum founded off Union Road, later to become known as The Lawn
* Lincolnshire's second Agricultural Society formed at a meeting in the Reindeer Inn, Guildhall Street, Lincoln (21 April)
* The medieval market cross rebuilt at Market Deeping
* Free School built in Market Deeping
* Turner, Hardy and Newcombe's Bank formed in Grantham with a capital of £16,000
* Joseph Shuttleworth, boat builder, then agricultural engineer, born at Dogdyke (12 July)

1869
* Foundation stone of St Swithun's Church, Lincoln laid by the Bishop of Lincoln, Christopher Wordsworth (Easter Day)
* Christopher Addison MP, the first Minister of Health 1919-21, born at Hogsthorpe (19 June)
* First Show of the current Lincolnshire Agriculture Society held in Lincoln on the Cowpaddle (29-31 July)
* Diana, the last whaling shop from the port of Hull, wrecked at Donna Nook in a severe gale
* Grantham's Guildhall, designed by William Watkins of Lincoln and built by William Wartnaby, completed at a cost of £2,480
* All Hallows church, North Kelsey, largely rebuilt by William White
* Arthur Smith, first curator of Lincoln's City and County Museum (now The Collection), born Leicester.
* Schools opened at Osgodby, Careby and South Hykeham
* St Phillip Mission church built at Guy's Head in the parish of Sutton Bridge
* Lincoln YMCA founded
* Greek National poet Andreas Kalvos died in Louth and later buried in Keddington churchyard. Following intervention by the Greek Ambassador, his body was repatriated to Zacynthos in 1960.

1919
* Boston Council purchased land for Central Park (previously Hopkin's Park)
* Florence Jackson murdered in a fit of jealousy by George Rowland at Fulbeck (31 May)
* Work began on Swanpool Garden Suburb, Lincoln
* Lincolnshire Tennis (The Lincolnshire Lawn Tennis Association) founded
* What finally became St John's Hospital at Bracebridge Heath changed its name from Bracebridge District Lunatic Asylum to Bracebridge Mental Hospital
* Eamon de Valera, Irish Dissident, escaped from Lincoln Prison with the aid of a duplicate key concealed in a cake (4 February)
* First international tractor trials to be held in the UK, South Carlton (September)

1969
* The Lincolnshire Association for the Arts and Heritage opened the Museum of Lincolnshire Life (29 July)
* Four horse riders (an instructor and three 8-year-old children) died in thick fog on the beach at Cleethorpes (17 September)
* Primary schools closed in Ashby de la Launde, Bicker, Burton Pedwardine, Sutton St Edmund, and Withcall.
* Horncastle Children's Home closed. The buildings were then extended and remodelled as the County's residential education centre.
* Robert Stephenson, 75-year-old recluse, killed by robbers at his home in Barton upon Humber (April)
* Regular hovercraft service between Grimsby and Hull began (17 Feb)
* Tony Jacklin, a native of Scunthorpe, won The Open Championship (golf), the first British player for 18 years to do so (12 July)