A Market-Place Made by Water Tuesday Market Place is one of King’s Lynn’s great urban spaces, but it was never just a handsome square. Its […]
Read moreTag: Local History
When the Wick Bay Broke Her Back: The Wreck that Changed King’s Lynn
A ship in the channel On a December afternoon in 1889, the iron steamship Wick Bay grounded in the approaches to King’s Lynn. She was not an […]
Read moreBefore the Roundabout: The Forgotten River That Built South Lynn
The road hides the river Thousands of vehicles pass through Southgates every day. Most drivers notice the medieval South Gate standing awkwardly in the middle […]
Read moreBaptists in King’s Lynn: chapels, quarrels, and a stubborn dissenting tradition
King’s Lynn has never been a town of quiet religious uniformity. Behind the great parish church, beyond the formal world of bishops and parish order, […]
Read moreHalf of Lynn? The d’Aubigny Family and a Medieval Myth
For centuries, one of England’s most powerful aristocratic families is said to have owned half of Lynn. It is a memorable claim. The bishop of […]
Read moreMice, Mellow Men, and Candlewives: The Strange Names of Medieval Lynn
What sort of man acquired the name Richard Skin-the-Cat? Why was another Lynn resident known as William the Mellow? Was Agnes the Candlewife a candle seller, a candle maker, […]
Read moreCandles, Broken Windows, and Radical Words: John Wilkes and John Thelwall in King’s Lynn
A town that loved liberty, until liberty became dangerous In February 1771, John Wilkes came to King’s Lynn as one of the most famous political […]
Read moreThe Falling Stones and the Medieval Miracles
Stone has a special force in medieval miracle stories. It is heavy, visible, and public. A fever may leave little for witnesses to inspect; a […]
Read moreBooks Above the Porch: King’s Lynn’s Long Library Story
King’s Lynn did not begin with a public library. It began with books in churches, records in counting houses, papers in civic chests, and learned […]
Read moreThe King’s Lynn Cottages That Were Once Part of a Priory
A quiet row with a deeper history Priory Cottages in King’s Lynn are easy to underestimate. They stand in Priory Lane, close to the churchyard […]
Read moreRichard Clampe and the Fortress of King’s Lynn
A forgotten figure in Lynn’s Civil War story The siege of King’s Lynn in 1643 is usually remembered through blockade, bombardment, divided loyalties and surrender. […]
Read moreBridges at Lynn: The Carpenters Behind Edward I’s Scottish Campaign
In 1303 some men from Lynn went to war in an unusual way. Bridges at Lynn: How Carpenters in Lynn Helped Edward I’s 1303 Campaign […]
Read moreArchitecture, Trade, and Civic Ambition: The Custom House, King’s Lynn
The Custom House, King’s Lynn: The Building That Announced a Port Few buildings in King’s Lynn declare the town’s old confidence more clearly than the […]
Read moreRefugee in King’s Lynn Minster: Naomi Blake’s Quiet Monument
Refugee in King’s Lynn Minster: Naomi Blake’s Quiet Monument in the Holy Trinity Chapel Finding the sculpture If you make your way beyond the choir stalls […]
Read moreThe Lost Market Cross of King’s Lynn: Henry Bell’s Tuesday Market Missing Centrepiece
A market monument at the heart of King’s Lynn At the northern end of King’s Lynn’s Tuesday Market Place there once stood one of the […]
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