John Jackson (1585-1612) was Vicar of Bourne at a time when there were many recusants, that is clergymen unwilling to conform to the doctrine and practices of the Church of England. He was one of 18 in the Diocese of Lincoln who caused trouble because of their non-conformist tendencies by refusing to wear a surplice or observe certain ceremonies during services such as giving the sign of the cross and failing to follow the Book of Common Prayer. He was suspended from the church in 1611 but was already seriously ill and died the following year.

Jeremiah Ives (1692-1741) originated in Bourne but his family moved to Norfolk when he was still young. In 1726, he became Sheriff of Norwich and was elected mayor in 1733. He kept two homes during this period, one at Norwich and another at Bourne, and travelled between the two. Ives married Alice Black of Norwich in 1714 and had a son, also called Jeremiah, who was born here circa 1729 and also became a mayor of Norwich.

Dr William Dodd (1729-1777) was an Anglican clergyman, a man of letters and a forger. He was also the son of the Rev William Dodd who was Vicar of Bourne from 1727-56, graduating with distinction from Clare College, Cambridge, and then moved to London where his extravagant lifestyle soon landed him in debt and worried his friends who persuaded him to mend his ways. He decided to take holy orders and was ordained in 1751, becoming a popular and fashionable preacher but was always short of money and in an attempt to rectify his depleted finances, forged a bond in the sum of £4,200. He was found out, prosecuted and sentenced to death and publicly hanged at Tyburn on 27th June 1777.

Bryan Browning (1773-1856), the architect, is best remembered for his design of Bourne Town Hall, built in 1821 by public subscription and still in use today. He was also responsible for the House of Correction at Folkingham and the workhouses at Bourne, Stamford and Spalding. Browning was a dedicated villager whose family made their mark on Thurlby over a period of two centuries and several members are buried in the churchyard.

William Bampton (1787-1830) knew his calling from an early age and joined the Baptist Church when he was only thirteen, deciding that he would dedicate his life to the ministry but chose to become a missionary and in 1820, his offer to serve in India was accepted. "This afternoon, I have solemnly devoted myself to the service of God among the heathen", he wrote in his diary. He took instruction in medicine and surgery, vital training for the missionaries of the time, was married and ordained, and sailed for Bombay in 1822. Once in India, he learned the language, went into the bazaars, dressed in Indian costume and spoke to the people, telling them the story of Christianity, of the life and work of Jesus and of the message of God's love for each one of them. But his mission did not last long. The hard work and unhealthy conditions took their toll and he died in 1830 but is remembered by Baptists today for his missionary zeal and is ranked with the foremost Christian philanthropists.

Joseph Dodsworth (1797-1877) ministered to the parish of Bourne as curate and then vicar for 55 years and was instrumental in bringing the railway to the town in the mid-19th century, being one of the sponsors of the newly formed company to build the track to connect with the main line at Essendine in 1860. He was also one of the original investors in the town’s gasworks and a supporter of popular education, regularly organising winter evening sessions of penny readings for the public. During his time as vicar, he was also generous in his personal gifts to the church, donating the stone and marble reredos in 1866 while the east window of stained glass commemorates members of his family and the centre panel was installed in his memory.

Jane Redmile (1800-1883) was the daughter of a yeoman farmer from Dyke whose unyielding faith, selfless service and sense of charity singled her out as a special person in her lifetime and her memory shines undimmed today as an example of the perfect life, perhaps even one approaching the state of grace we have come to know as saintliness. After a difficult childhood when she became breadwinner to her five brothers and sisters, Jane spent her life in continual labour in the cause of others while pursing her religious faith at the Baptist Church in West Street, Bourne, founding chapels at Morton and Dyke and opening a grocery shop in Eastgate to help the deprived, yet still finding time for an intensive programme of self-education to improve her mind. In her final years, when known in the town as Aunt Jane, she was frequently sought out by young people wanting to speak with her and although far removed by reason of age, she felt sufficiently young in heart to be one of them.

John Lely Ostler (1811-1859) was born into a distinguished family at Grantham who claimed the celebrated 17th century Dutch artist Sir Peter Lely as an ancestor. He did not move to Bourne until a few years before his early death at the age of 48 but in that time, he became one of the biggest land and property owners in the district, supporting charitable causes, including schools. Such was his reputation that an elaborate monument was erected in the market place in his memory although it has since been moved to the town cemetery.

Robert Mason Mills (1819-1904) realised the market potential of the fresh water supply that was freely available beneath Bourne and was soon extracting it from underground springs and selling it throughout the world. His aerated water business became part of the town's prosperity during the 19th century, giving employment to many and earning his business a Royal Warrant for supplying Queen Victoria's son, the Duke of Connaught, who bought it for its supposed medicinal and health giving qualities.

Charles Worth (1825-1895) was born in this town, the son of a local solicitor who lived at Wake House in North Street which survives today as a community centre. He left Bourne when still a boy to seek his fortune in Paris where he became an internationally known designer of women's fashion and the founder of haute couture. His reputation became such that the French government awarded him the Legion of Honour and when he died, 2,000 people, including the President of the Republic, attended his funeral.

William Wherry (1841-1915) was one of the most unselfish men to serve this town. He thought so much of his fellow man that he continually tried to make life better and this burden that he took upon himself might well have hastened his end. He was forced to retire from public life because of ill health at the age of 74 when his numerous offices and positions of responsibility numbered almost 100. If Bourne needs an example of a man of stature, then he is the one.

John Thomas Swift (1855-1939) is only remembered today by his book about the town and locality, Bourne and People associated with Bourne, published in 1909, but few copies survive outside the reference sections of our public libraries and recent research has superseded much of what he wrote. He was active in local affairs, sitting as a magistrate and serving as a member of Bourne Urban District Council, being elected chairman in 1908-09, and was subsequently elected to Kesteven County Council, now replaced by Lincolnshire County Council, and he later became an alderman. Swift was also responsible for the first detailed research into the list of past abbots and vicars of Bourne from the 12th century which is still accepted today and during his lifetime was frequently called upon to adjudicate on disputes and discussions involving the history of the town.

Robert A Gardner (1850-1926) was a bank manager in Bourne and also a talented artist whose work was exhibited in the Royal Academy. He never aspired to public office but his interest in the community inevitably resulted in a number of appointments, notably as a magistrate and chairman of the Bourne bench. But he is best remembered for his paintings and many of his works survive to this day, mostly in private ownership although some can be found hanging in the Red Hall.

Joseph James Davies (1856-1920) was one of the great schoolteachers in the history of Bourne who steered the former Abbey Primary School through its formative years. He was headmaster for 33 years during a period of changing social conditions, a pupil roll often in excess of 500 boys and girls and many of them coming from deprived backgrounds. He was appointed headmaster of the original Boys' Council or Board School in 1887 and during the next three decades, 2,000 boys came under his influence and tuition and in later years he kept in touch with many, notably those who served in the Great War, keeping up a regular correspondence until they returned home. Local history was a hobby which led to his book Historic Bourne being published in 1909, a natural adjunct to his freelance journalism, being the correspondent for most of the newspapers that circulated in Bourne and a frequent contributor to many London publications.

William Henry Redshaw (1856-1943) was brought up in the family's saddlery trade but preferred photography and in 1874, at the age of 18, he set up his own business, using his father's premises in North Street. Photography was still in its infancy and regarded as little more than a passing phase, but his studio was an immediate success. His work was mainly portrait photographs although he also produced views of the town that were used as picture postcards, many of which survive to this day to remind us of how much it has changed. His other accomplishment was growing flowers and vegetables and he spent hours in the garden of his home at No 41 George Street and was a frequent prize-winner when he exhibited his produce at local shows.

Dr William John Gilpin (1864-1943) moved to Bourne in the late 19th century to take over the practice at Brook Lodge in South Street and became one of the first people in the town to own a car. During the Great War of 1914-18, he was appointed commandant of the military hospital run by the Red Cross which was established at the Vestry Hall in North Street from November 1914 until December 1918 during which time 945 wounded soldiers from the front line were cared for and he was awarded the MBE for his services in conducting the unit in such an efficient manner. There were fears for his health in 1917 when he contracted blood poisoning while carrying out a post mortem examination and although he was seriously ill for a time, he recovered and was back at work within weeks.

Cecil Walker Bell (1868-1947) was a member of an old established legal firm that practised in Bourne for 150 years with offices at No 18 West Street. After qualifying as a solicitor, he took over the business from his father and held many of the leading public legal posts, including that of coroner for South Lincolnshire. He was a keen military man, commanding the local Volunteers for many years and reaching the rank of major, and was also active in the social and musical life of the town. Mr Bell served as people’s warden at the Abbey Church but in 1933 he was successfully sued for libel by the vicar, Canon John Grinter, and in 1940, he left the town and retired to Eastbourne and never returned.

Thomas Whyment Atkinson (1874-1954) bequeathed property and  land which enabled the development of the Wellhead park and War Memorial gardens, established in the years following the Second World War of 1939-45. He spent more than half a century devoted to farming and the community, as union officer and advisor, councillor and justice of the peace, serving for 52 years on Bourne Urban District Council, subsequently joining South Kesteven Rural District Council on its formation. He was also a member of Kesteven County Council from 1910, being elevated to the aldermancy in 1921, and in 1945, he became High Sheriff of Lincolnshire, an appointment he regarded as not only an honour for himself but also for Kesteven and the Bourne area particularly.

Frederic Manning (1882-1935) wrote what is considered to be one of the finest novels dealing with the Great War of 1914-18 and much of this work was completed while staying at the Bull Hotel in Bourne, now the Burghley Arms, and he later went to lodge at a house in Burghley Street. Manning was an Australian who chose to live here after a spell at Edenham where he stayed with the vicar, the Rev Arthur Galton, who had been his tutor. His book, Her Privates We, was at first published anonymously, to much critical acclaim, but eight years after his death, it was published in 1943 under his own name and is still in print almost 70 years later. In the book, Manning acknowledged his affection for this town by calling his hero Private Bourne.

Lilian Wyles (1885-1975) was a major influence in the acceptance of women into the police force. She was the only daughter of the Bourne brewer, Joseph Wyles, and after a spell of duty on the streets of London with the new women patrols to assist young girls at risk, was promoted inspector in 1922, becoming the first woman officer of the Metropolitan Police's CID department.

Charles Pask Matthews (1886-1956) became the first headmaster of Bourne Grammar School when it was opened in 1920. The school originally began with three other staff and 50 pupils, meeting first in the Vestry Hall because the buildings were not ready for occupation, but in subsequent years he was mainly responsible for its establishment as a major educational force in the district, guiding it through the crucial early days and eventually seeing it firmly established with a promising future before he retired in 1945 after a quarter of a century. Mr Matthews was also a skilled scientist and in 1940, while the Second World War was in progress, he put his extensive knowledge at the disposal of Bourne Urban District Council for the testing of meat affected by poison gas.

Charles Sharpe (1889-1963) was a farmer's boy from Pickworth, near Bourne, who ran away from home and joined the army. During the Great War of 1914-18, an act of conspicuous bravery earned him the Victoria Cross, Britain's highest decoration for valour, and he subsequently inspired many young men to enlist. He received his award from King George V at Windsor Castle on 24th July 1915 and during that year he also visited Bourne to speak at a public meeting in the Market Place rallying young men to volunteer for military service. On return to civilian life, he had several jobs, notably as a physical training instructor for boys at the Hereward Camp approved school who regarded him as a role model, and on his death, he was given a military funeral.

Horace Stanton (1897-1977), a local solicitor, gave a lifetime of service to this town and it is to him that we are indebted for the War Memorial and its gardens and the Abbey Lawn. He also commanded the district's Home Guard detachment during the Second World War. There were few aspects of life in the town that he did not influence and the high esteem in which he was held was echoed at his funeral service when the vicar, the Rev Gordon Lanham said: "If you would see his monument, look around."

Thomas Raymond Mays (1899-1980), son of a local businessman, achieved fame in the world of international motor racing, both on and off the track. After a successful career as a driver, he opened workshops in Bourne where he developed the BRM, the car that eventually became the first all-British model to win the world championship in 1962. Mays, who lived at Eastgate House in Bourne all his life, was honoured with a CBE in 1978 for his services to motor racing but the business he founded no longer exists in Bourne and the workshops where he built his record breaking cars were converted for use as an auction saleroom.

Lorenzo Warner (1901-1995) started his working life as a newspaper delivery boy and the business he began with a newspaper shop in Abbey Road continues in Bourne today as Warners Midlands plc, one of the most prestigious printing companies in this part of Britain and still run as a family concern. He was also active in many areas of community life including the Methodist Church, Bourne Cricket Club and Bourne Urban District Council, becoming their chairman for the year 1970-71, while his life in business is proof that hard work and a dedication to duty can bring its own reward.

Jack Burchnell (1909-1973) was among the last of the old style councillors who put the people before personal gain and reputation. He devoted more than a quarter of a century to this town and was responsible for instilling a new sense of pride in the community by inaugurating both the Civic Sunday and the Civic Ball, events that survive to this day, as well as saving the Red Hall at a time when many councillors wanted it demolished but his dedication and hard work ensured that it has been preserved for the community.

Marjorie Clark (1919-2007) was the longest serving councillor in Bourne with more than 40 years of public service to her credit. She moved to the town with her husband in 1959 to run a public house, the Burghley Arms and then the Nag’s Head, and was elected a member of Bourne Urban District Council in 1961, later becoming the first woman chairman of South Kesteven District Council from 1990-92. She was also a member of the town council, being elected Mayor of Bourne twice, in 1984 and again in 1999 at the age of 81, but eventually stood down in 2007 because of declining health. Council work was always her main interest. "I have never specialised in any particular field but have taken a deep interest in them all", she said, "whether it be the roads, housing, public health, welfare and even the Christmas lights. I like to think of myself as a dedicated councillor representing the people who have voted for me all these years for that is what I was elected to do and that is what I have always striven to achieve." Her daughter, Penny, who gave the eulogy at her memorial service in Abbey Church, said: "If there is a committee in heaven, she will be on it."