Population

UNTIL 1801, the actual population of Bourne was never accurately known. According to an inventory of the estate of Lady Blanche Wake, whose family owned the Manor of Bourne, a total of 2,295 people were reported to be living here in 1380 and it also listed 413 houses and a military garrison of 200 strong. This population figure however, appears to be quite high and is most likely to be incorrect because two centuries later there were only 174 families in residence and the population never reached 2,295 again until 1820.

By 1665, it was estimated from various tax returns that Bourne, including Cawthorpe and Dyke which both lie within the parish, had 780 inhabitants and that the figure had only increased to 807 eleven years later. In the 18th century, as in earlier periods, it is difficult to obtain precise figures for Bourne's population although a count made at three different times during the years 1705 to 1723 shows that the town contained 300 families, then 212, and then 217, but the precise dates for these surveys are not known.

However, these figures do show that there was a marked decrease in the population of Bourne during the first quarter of the century, a trend that reflects to an unusual degree the general tendency for the county, whereas a slight decrease in the total number of families occurred between 1706 and 1721 and at this time, Bourne was still large when compared to the size of other Lincolnshire towns.

Towards the end of the century, it is probable that the population of Bourne began to increase again and the introduction of the national census in 1801 brought with it more accurate population figures with a gradual increase in growth for the ensuing years.

The figure for that year was 1,664 and the town grew at a rate unequalled until modern times with the figure more than doubling in the forty years from 1811 (1,784) to 1851 (3,717). Thereafter, it remained at almost the same level, until the last two decades of the century brought a further, but more gradual, upward trend until 1891 (4,191).

During the 20th century, the town continued to increase in size, although its growth was steady rather than spectacular until 1931 (4,889) but after the Second World War of 1939-45, the population then began to rise more rapidly and the census of 1951 revealed that the town had 5,105 inhabitants.

One of the main catalysts was the increased opportunities for employment in neighbouring towns such as Stamford and Grantham and particularly Peterborough rather than in any sudden new development in Bourne itself although not all of the newcomers were commuters.

Bourne Urban District Council had striven hard, and with some success, to attract light industry to Bourne and the construction of new housing was soon underway to cope with the influx and lower house prices also made the town a popular place to set up home.

The 1961 population of 5,337 reflected future trends and there was a further increase by 1981 (8,142). The total from the latest census taken in April 2001 was 11,933 but this figure is now likely to have increased dramatically as a result of a programme of intensive private house building in the town, notably 2,000 new homes currently under construction at Elsea Park as well as numerous smaller developments elsewhere, and a population of around 15,000 would appear to be a more realistic figure as Bourne expands at a far greater rate than at any time in its history.

Elsea Park now increasing the population of Bourne