Review - The Act Book of St Katherine’s Gild, Stamford, 1480-1534

Great Northern Railway Branches from Stamford By Peter Paye. Published by Lightmoor Press, Lydney, Gloucestershire. 2017. Price £25 - ISBN-13: 978-1911038245 This well illustrated hardback book of 176 indexed pages with black and white images and diagrams, is to be commended for its production values and erudition. It provides a comprehensive history of the railway branches from ‘Stamford East’ station linking the town, via Ryhall and Belmesthorpe, to the Great Northern Railway at Essendine. It also covers the Stamford to Wansford section in Northamptonshire. The book contains much of interest to the local reader, outlining the origins and history of the routes, as well as technical details concerning timetables, locomotives, rolling stock, track, bridges, level-crossings and signalling. There is also a section on the people who operated the railway. This book will appeal to those living in the eastern part of the county, those interested in its transport connections and, of course, rail enthusiasts. RBP

The Complete Guide to the Parish Churches of Rutland By Andrew Swift Published in 2014 by Velox Books, Leicester - Softbound - 114 pages – A4 ISBN: 978-0-9575701-2-2 - Price £15 plus £3 for courier delivery The Parish Churches of Leicestershire By Andrew Swift Published in 2013 by Velox Books, Leicester - Volume 1: Ab Kettleby to Launde Abbey Chapel Softbound - 286 pages – A4 - ISBN: 978-0-9575701-0-8 Price £20 plus £3 for courier delivery Volume 2: Leicester’s Medieval Churches to Wymondham Softbound - 311 pages – A4 ISBN: 978-0-9575701-1-5 - Price £20 plus £3 for courier delivery All three books available from local bookshops, Rutland County Museum or via andrewswift.co.uk Andrew Swift, a geologist with a passion for historic buildings, has published three books about the Anglican churches of Leicestershire and Rutland. Volume 1 of The Parish Churches of Leicestershire covers Ab Kettleby to Launde Abbey Chapel, and Volume 2 covers Leicester’s Medieval Churches to Wymondham, a total of 316 churches in the two volumes. The Complete Guide to the Parish Churches of Rutland covers all 50 churches in the county, including Normanton. The author, an honorary visiting fellow at the University of Leicester, is quoted as saying ‘I’m interested in history and became fascinated with churches and their place in social evolution over time’. All three books follow the same format – a main photograph of the outside of the church, around 400 non-technical words on the history, features and general design of each building as well as anything else of interest, and a full page of up to 15 colour photographs to illustrate the text. Volume 1 of the Leicestershire books has a foreword by the Bishop of Leicester and volume 2 has a good bibliography. Likewise, the Rutland book has a foreword by the Bishop of Peterborough and a bibliography. There are of course other books on the churches of Rutland – including the Victoria County History for Rutland, volume II, Canon John Prophet and Tony Traylen’s Churches of Rutland, Gillian Dickenson’s Rutland Parish Churches Before Restoration, Leonard Cantor’s The Parish Churches of Leicestershire and Rutland and Pauline Collett’s The Parish Churches of Rutland (reviewed in the April 2013 issue of this Newsletter). All bring something different to the reader and the new volume on Rutland churches is no different. If, like me, you enjoy exploring the parish churches of Leicestershire and Rutland, you may want to buy all three of these excellent new publications. Robert Ovens