Abbey Lawn history

BOURNE IS BLESSED with several green spaces for relaxation and sport but the Abbey Lawn has been in public use for longer than any other.

In times past, the land formed part of the grounds of Bourne Abbey although the public were allowed to use it at the discretion of the vicar. There is no record of access ever being restricted or the public being banned from using the Abbey Lawn for this purpose and so it became the town's unofficial recreation ground and has been in use for such purposes for at least 200 years.

Our two main national sports have dominated and a century ago, the football pitch was located on the north side of the field while cricket was played where the soccer pitch is now situated and usually grazed by sheep off season. The land was eventually acquired by a syndicate of local businessmen who rented out the rights for cricket and football but when it came under threat from housing development, Bourne United Charities decided to buy it for the benefit of the town.

The purchase was sanctioned by the Charity Commissioners in January 1931 subject to a satisfactory valuation and by May that year, the transaction was agreed in the sum of £700, to which the cricket club made a token donation of £20. The trustees, advised by their very capable clerk, Horace Stanton (1897-1977), completed the purchase with the intention of preserving it as an open space and sports ground for the town in perpetuity and since then there has been a continuous programme of improvement.

A plaque on the left hand column at the main gates in Abbey Road says: "These grounds were purchased in the years 1931-34 by the Trustees of Bourne United Charities in order to preserve the same as an open space for ever and the work of levelling and laying out the grounds was carried out by trainees from the Ministry of Labour Instructional Centre, Bourne." There is a second notice on the opposite column that says: "The trees and shrubs in these grounds were planted to commemorate the Silver Jubilee of HM King George the Fifth, 6th May 1935."

The handsome hand-forged, wrought iron entrance gates to the Abbey Lawn were made during the 18th century and formerly graced an estate entrance to a stately home in Derbyshire. They were acquired through the efforts of Horace Stanton and installed in 1933 and the side gates were made to match by Mr William Friend, an agricultural engineer and specialist in metal work who was in business in Bourne at that time.

Football has been played here for almost 140 years, one of the first games being recorded in 1871. The present Bourne Town Football Club dates from 1897 (not 1883 as is generally believed) while Bourne Town Cricket Club’s activities date from 1803 but current records only go back to 1920 and the facilities have become greatly enhanced under the present ownership, making it one of the most attractive grounds in Lincolnshire.

Bourne Tennis Club formerly played on courts in Burghley Street for almost 100 years until the site was sold in 1958 when the club was saved by Bourne United Charities which was planning a new set of courts on land that had once been used to provide vegetables and herbs for the monks of Bourne Abbey. The ground was subsequently levelled and drained and turf from the old courts in Burghley Street lifted and used for the new ones on the Abbey Lawn which were opened for play in May 1959.

There was once a putting green here (circa 1965) but now closed. It was a great attraction during the summer months when visitors could spend an enjoyable hour or so for a small fee and it was a very popular pastime, especially for courting couples on hot and sunny Sunday afternoons when the ice cream man was waiting nearby with his Stop-me-and-buy-one pedal cart. Quoits was also popular and competition was keen whenever visiting clubs arrived from surrounding towns and hockey was played here from 1921 until recent years.

Bourne Town Bowls Club which occupies land on the far corner of the site, dates back to 1953 when it was known as the Abbey Road Bowling Club. A brick built pavilion was completed in 1977 and two years later the club changed to its present name. Next door is the Outdoor Swimming Pool, formerly the carp pond for the monk’s of Bourne Abbey but taken over by BUC in 1922 and now greatly enhanced and one of the few remaining lidos in England. In the far corner of the Abbey Lawn, near to the eastern entrance, is an enclosed court for petanque, a type of boules played especially in France and a game that has gained popularity since the town became twinned with Doudeville in Normandy in October 1989.

The Abbey Lawn has had many other uses over the years such as maypole dancing by schoolchildren on May Day during Victorian and Edwardian times, the annual Whit Monday sports, a notable feature during the 19th century which continued for over 30 years when top athletes from around the country competed, and even ladies’ cricket matches. When flax was grown in the area to help the national effort during and after the Great War, itinerant workers who were brought in for the harvest each year camped under canvas on the Abbey Lawn and in the summer of 1918, there was a tented town catering for 500 people assisted by troops from various regiments.

Church feasts and treats were celebrated here and gatherings for other national and royal occasions such as Queen Victoria’s golden jubilee in 1887 and patriotic meetings and military parades during two world wars. Over the years therefore, the Abbey Lawn has been a focal point for the people and synonymous with the community spirit here in Bourne.

NOTE: This article was published by The Local newspaper on Friday 16th February 2007.