Donington is a village and civil parish in the South Holland District of Lincolnshire, England. It is 8 miles (13 km) north from the market town of Spalding and 11 miles (18 km) south of Boston on the A152, it is bypassed by the A52, and sits between the A16 and A17. The parish includes the hamlet of Northorpe,[2] and falls within the drainage area of the Black Sluice Internal Drainage Board.[3] Donington is the birthplace of the explorer Matthew Flinders[4] and he was reburied there in 2024.
| Donington | |
|---|---|
 Church of St Mary and the Holy Rood, Donington | |
  Donington Location within Lincolnshire | |
| Population | 3,196 (2021 census)[1] |
| OS grid reference | TF212355 |
| • London | 100 S |
| Civil parish |
|
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Spalding |
| Postcode district | PE11 |
| Dialling code | 01775 |
| Police | Lincolnshire |
| Fire | Lincolnshire |
| Ambulance | East Midlands |
| UK Parliament | |
History
editIn Roman times, a road connected Wainfleet from the east coast through the settlement to Grantham. The road, Salters Way, was to carry salt from The Wash to the Midlands.[5] In the Domesday Book (1086) the settlement which then was called Donnicture was a small hamlet with a Lord of the Manor and 16 salt works worth 20/-.[5] It then had a recorded population of 65 households in the hundred of Kirton.[6]
Donington was large enough in the 18th century to attract the travelling theatrical companies. In 1784, a surgeon, Matthew Flinders, father of the famous navigator, wrote "in the latter half of October and beginning of November we have a small Company of Comedians with us. I went 3 or 4 times and once or twice was tolerably entertained".[7]
Governance
editAs well as having its own parish council, Donington is part of the electoral ward of Donington, Quadring and Gosberton within the South Holland district of Lincolnshire. The total population of the ward taken at the 2021 census was 3,196.
It also forms part of the Donington Rural electoral division of Lincolnshire County Council.
Parish church
editDonington's Church of England parish church is dedicated to St Mary and the Holy Rood. It is a Grade I listed building.[8] The church is almost a complete combination of early Decorated and late Perpendicular style. Its chancel, however, is mainly Early English. The church tower and spire rise to 240 feet (73 m).[9]
Matthew Flinders' remains were identified in London in January 2019. Permission was granted for him to be re-buried in the north aisle of the Church of St Mary and the Holy Rood where he was baptised. His remains were reburied on 13 July 2024.[10][11][12][13]
Geography
editThe contract for the A52 bypass was £1.8m in April 1988.[14] Work began in October 1988, with a 45 week contract, to open in September 1989.[15] The bypass opened three months early in May 1989, being built by Lincolnshire county council.[16]
Community
edit
Local amenities include a park, a playpark, and a teen skatepark. Donington businesses include The Black Bull public house, Coop and Premier stores in the Market Place, an independent opticians, a butchers, a hair stylist, a flower shop, and a pets & produce outlet. A timber windows manufacturer, employing approximately 100 people, is one of the main employers,[citation needed] while a fire prevention and security company has its head office in Donington.
Schools
editThere are two schools: the Donington Cowley Endowed Primary School, and Cowley Academy, a non-selective secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16, and partly Grade II listed.[17][18]
Travel
editThe nearest Railway Stations are very close by in Spalding [1] and Boston [2] with regular connected services to Peterborough, Lincoln, Derby, Sheffield, Leicester, Nottingham and London. The village is on an operating passenger rail line with stopping services, but has no station. In 2008 Hull Trains proposed reopening it as a railhead to nearby Boston for a direct Lincoln to London service.
Donington is on the regular B9 Bus route between Boston and Spalding [3]
Sport
editDonington has football teams for two age groups: Old Doningtonians for over eighteens, and Young Dons (established in 1996) for anyone under that age; Old Dons play in the Saturday Boston League and Young Dons on a Sunday in the Mid-Lincolnshire Junior League.
References
edit- ^ "Donington (Lincolnshire, East Midlands, United Kingdom) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map, Location, Weather and Web Information". Retrieved 22 May 2024.
- ^ "Northorpe hamlet". Genuki.org.uk. Retrieved 2 August 2011.
- ^ "The Black Sluice Internal Drainage Board".
- ^ Matthew Flinders – his life in Donington Archived 21 September 2017 at the Wayback Machine South Holland Life. Retrieved 2 October 2020
- ^ a b "About the village".
- ^ "Donington | Domesday Book".
- ^ Neil R Wright (2016). Treading the Boards. SLHA. p. 93.
- ^ Historic England. "Church of St Mary and the Holy Rood (1064449)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 21 July 2011.
- ^ Cox, J. Charles (1916) Lincolnshire pp. 117, 118; Methuen & Co. Ltd
- ^ "He's coming home! The remains of Captain Matthew Flinders will be buried in Donington". Archived from the original on 18 October 2019. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
- ^ Bishop, Mark. "In the Consistory Court at Lincoln; In the matter of St Mary and the Holy Rood, Donington; Judgment (25 April 2020)" (PDF). Ecclesiasticallawassociation.org.uk. Ecclesiastical Law Association. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
- ^ "The final voyage of Captain Matthew Flinders". Archived from the original on 17 October 2019. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
- ^ Maslin, Eleanor; Parkhill, Harry (13 July 2024). "Australia explorer laid to rest in village". BBC News. Retrieved 14 July 2024.
- ^ Lincolnshire Free Press Tuesday 26 April 1988, page 19
- ^ Lincolnshire Free Press Tuesday 15 November 1988, page 3
- ^ Spalding Guardian Friday 2 June 1989, page 2
- ^ Historic England. "Old School Building at Cowleys School (1064457)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 21 July 2011.
- ^ Historic England. "North Wing of Cowleys School (1166210)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 21 July 2011.
External links
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Media related to Donington, Lincolnshire at Wikimedia Commons- "St Mary and the Holy Rood", Churches in England. Retrieved 21 July 2011
- "Donington", Genuki.org.uk. Retrieved 21 July 2011
- Thomas Cowley High School, Retrieved 7 July 2013
