John O'Gaunts was a football ground in

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincol ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. It was the home ground of Lincoln City from 1884 until 1895.

History

Located to the south of Lincoln city centre, the John O'Gaunts ground had no spectator facilities and only a dressing room for the players.Paul Smith & Shirley Smith (2005) ''The Ultimate Directory of English & Scottish Football League Grounds Second Edition 1888–2005'', Yore Publications, p70, It took its name from

John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (6 March 1340 – 3 February 1399) was an English royal prince, military leader, and statesman. He was the fourth son (third to survive infancy as William of Hatfield died shortly after birth) of King Edward ...

, who owned land in Lincoln. Lincoln City were elected to the Second Division of

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in Association football around the wor ...

in 1892, with the first Football League game played at the ground on 1 October 1892 as Lincoln beat

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...

1–0 in front of 2,000 spectators. The highest League attendance at the ground was set on 23 March 1894 when 7,500 watched Lincoln lose 2–0 to

Notts County Notts County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nottingham, England. The team participate in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Founded on the 25 November 1862, it is the ...

. At the end of the 1894–95 season the club moved to

Sincil Bank Sincil Bank Stadium, known for sponsorship reasons as LNER Stadium, is a football stadium in Lincoln, England which has been the home of Lincoln City since 1895. Previously, Lincoln City had played at the nearby John O'Gaunts ground since th ...

, around 300 metres to the south-east. The final League match at John O'Gaunts was played on 13 April 1895, with Lincoln beating

Crewe Alexandra Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, that competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' because of ...

5–2. The ground was later used for housing, and is now the site of Sibthorp Street.

References

{{Lincoln City F.C. Defunct football venues in England Lincoln City F.C. Defunct sports venues in Lincolnshire Sports venues in Lincoln, England Sports venues completed in 1884 1884 establishments in England Football Alliance venues