THE WEEKLY MARKET continues in Bourne after more than 700 years despite misgivings about its future in the face of competition from the supermarkets. The stalls were originally erected in the market place, now the town centre, but with the advent of the motor car they were ranged along the pavements until that also became too dangerous and 21 years ago they were finally moved off the streets altogether to a new paved area behind the Town Hall. 

In recent years, the number of stalls has declined but our local authorities have tried to make the new venue more attractive to shoppers and it is still an enjoyable outing, especially on sunny days in summer. The market has also retained its role down the years as a place for traders to sell their wares while stimulating business elsewhere in the town such as the public houses and cafes, as shoppers seeking bargains also gather to meet old friends, hear the latest news and gossip, to discuss their various illnesses, exchange opinions on the topics of the day and even to criticise the council and the government. 

The market was founded by royal charter granted to the Lord of the Manor of Bourne, Baldwin Wake, by King Edward I in 1279. The original charter document, dated two years later, is now in the British Museum, giving permission for trading to take place on a Saturday and this tradition has continued to the present day although a Thursday market was later added and this has become the more popular of the two.  

Many similar market towns were being established in England at this time and although the number was seriously reduced by the Black Death, they flourished again during 1500-1650 when Bourne was one of thirty-seven market towns in Lincolnshire. 

The manorial rights were eventually acquired by the Cecil family whose distinguished member William Cecil became the first Lord Burghley, and this entitled his descendants, the Marquesses of Exeter, to receive the market rents. In 1962, the then marquess sold the rights to Bourne Urban District Council and in the local government re-organisation of 1974, they passed to South Kesteven District Council which now collects the market tolls and is responsible for its administration. 

In mediaeval Bourne, market stalls were known as the shambles and it was not always easy to distinguish them from the shops but by the 16th century, they were generally small premises erected for the sale of fish and meat and let out to townsmen and traders from other places on market days.  

By the early 19th century, the old town hall in Bourne had become dilapidated and a site occupied by a house adjoining the Bull Inn (now the Burghley Arms) on the east side of the market place was chosen for a new building which was erected in 1821 but this too was to have a shambles or set of stalls underneath, and from this arrangement sprang the eventual street market that became a familiar sight in the town during recent times. 

A survey of the market carried out in October 1921 showed that there were 62 stalls occupying a frontage of some 225 yards along North Street and West Street. The scale and importance of the undertaking to the town may be judged from an entry in the minutes of Bourne Urban District Council for May 1924 when it was decided to inform the Marquess of Exeter that residents living in the vicinity were complaining about the noise created by the late hour of closing on Saturday nights and suggesting that his lordship give instructions for the stalls to be taken down at 10 pm, an indication that market hours tended to be very much longer than today and the gatherings far more lively. 

Everything was sold at the market in earlier times including grain and livestock but these undertakings were eventually given their own premises, the cattle market which was established in 1860 and continued in business until 1981 and the Corn Exchange, built in 1870, which became the centre of the grain trade until 1938 when it was bought by Bourne Urban District Council for community use, a role that continues to this day. 

Markets have always been a magnet for country folk and a survey of 1950 revealed that almost 60% of those people who attended travelled between one mile and five miles to get there, many arriving in their Sunday best to spend the day in town. Goods were brought in for sale from the farms and villages and tradesmen would arrive to display their wares.  

The market continued in the town centre, along the western kerbsides in North Street and West Street, until the closing years of the 20th century when increasing traffic flows finally made road conditions too hazardous for shoppers and on Thursday 13th December 1990, it was moved to the present purpose built paved area behind the town hall, planned as part of the Burghley Arcade and Corn Exchange development on the site of the old cattle market that had now closed. 

The change did not please everyone and there have since been several attempts to move the market back on the streets, the last in 2006 which was rejected by the local authorities because it would have involved road closures on market days, and it is now widely accepted that in view of the present volume of traffic through the town centre, that would not be a practical proposition. 

In October 2009, significant changes were made to the weekly market where trade had been in danger of flagging in past months. A new look was introduced for the stalls with attractive blue and white awnings and welcome messages for shoppers, thanks to an investment by South Kesteven District Council.

As well as providing a fresh approach to this historic feature of the town it was hoped that the improvements would attract new traders and increase turnover and the initial reaction appeared to be that everyone had given the thumbs-up to the transformation and so the market continues in business but with fluctuating fortunes.