Caistor is a town and
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
in the
West Lindsey
West Lindsey is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district in Lincolnshire, England. Its council is based in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, Gainsborough, the district's largest town. The district also includes the towns of Caistor and M ...
district of
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...
, England. As its name implies, it was originally a
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of Roman civilization
*Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
castrum
''Castra'' () is a Latin language, Latin term used during the Roman Republic and Roman Empire for a military 'camp', and ''castrum'' () for a 'Fortification, fort'. Either could refer to a building or plot of land, used as a fortified milita ...
or fortress.
It lies at the north-west edge of the
Lincolnshire Wolds, on the
Viking Way, and just off the
A46 between
Lincoln and
Grimsby
Grimsby or Great Grimsby is a port town in Lincolnshire, England with a population of 86,138 (as of 2021). It is located near the mouth on the south bank of the Humber that flows to the North Sea. Grimsby adjoins the town of Cleethorpes dir ...
, at the A46,
A1084,
A1173 and B1225 junction. It has a population of 2,601. Its name comes from the
Anglo-Saxon
The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...
''ceaster'' ("
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of Roman civilization
*Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
camp" or "town") and was given in the
Domesday Book
Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
of 1086 as ''Castre''.
Buildings
Only a few fragments of the 4th-century walls remain; for example, the original Roman wall is visible on the southern boundary of the parish church of St Peter and St Paul.
[ The area occupied by the ]fortress
A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from L ...
is now classified as a scheduled monument
In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change.
The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage, visu ...
.[ The church of St Peter and St Paul, which is enclosed within the fortress, has an Anglo-Saxon tower. The ]market square
A market square (also known as a market place) is an urban square meant for trading, in which a market is held. It is an important feature of many towns and cities around the world. A market square is an open area where market stalls are tradit ...
lies at the heart of a conservation area
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewoo ...
which contains 56, mainly Grade II, listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...
s. In numerical terms, the number of listed buildings makes Caistor the most important conservation area in the West Lindsey area; many of the buildings are Georgian or Victorian. Notable buildings in the town include Caistor Grammar School, founded in 1633, and Sessions House, built in 1662.
In 2010 the remains of a 4th-century Roman cemetery were found during the development of a new Co-op
A cooperative (also known as co-operative, coöperative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democr ...
supermarket.
Education
Grammar school
Caistor Grammar School dates from the reign of Charles I. An academy
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...
with a selective pupil intake, it has specialist school
Specialist schools, also known as specialised schools or specialized schools, are schools which specialise in a certain area or field of curriculum. In some countries, for example New Zealand, the term is used exclusively for schools specialis ...
status for sports
Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in ...
and humanities
Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture, including Philosophy, certain fundamental questions asked by humans. During the Renaissance, the term "humanities" referred to the study of classical literature a ...
. Sir Henry Newbolt
Sir Henry John Newbolt, Order of the Companions of Honour, CH (6 June 1862 – 19 April 1938) was an English poet, novelist and historian. He also had a role as a government adviser with regard to the study of English in England. He is perhaps ...
, author of ''Drake's Drum
Drake's Drum is a snare drum that Francis Drake, Sir Francis Drake took with him when he Francis Drake's Circumnavigation, circumnavigated the world. Shortly before he died he ordered the drum to be taken to Buckland Abbey and vowed that if Eng ...
'', was educated at the school.
Caistor Yarborough Academy School
Caistor Yarborough Academy is a mixed comprehensive school
A comprehensive school is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–16 or 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is restricted on the basis ...
named in memory of John Edward Pelham, the 7th Earl of Yarborough. Being limited to 570 pupils it is much smaller than the average British school of this type. It has Arts College
An Arts College, in the United Kingdom, is a type of specialist school that specialises in the subject fields of the performing, visual, digital and/or media arts. They were announced in 1996 and introduced alongside Sports Colleges to En ...
status under the English specialist schools programme
The specialist schools programme (SSP), first launched as the Technology Colleges programme and also known as the specialist schools initiative, specialist schools policy and specialist schools scheme, was a government programme in the United ...
. In 2012 the school became an Academy
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...
.
RAF Caistor
Opened in 1940, RAF Caistor was built as a relief airfield for RAF Kirton in Lindsey, and also used for flying training from its grass runways. Closed in 1945, it later reopened as a nuclear missile base.
Between 1959 and 1963 Caistor was manned by 269(SM) Sqn. equipped with three Thor missiles. The site has now returned to agricultural use, and little remains of the military facilities.
Transport
The nearest railway station is Barnetby railway station. The town was formerly served by the stations at both North Kelsey and Moortown. Both are now closed but the station buildings survive as private residences.
The town has bus services to Brigg
Brigg (Wikipedia:IPA for English#Key, /'brɪg/) is a market town in North Lincolnshire, England, with a population of 5,076 in the United Kingdom Census 2001, 2001 UK census, the population increased to 5,626 at the 2011 census. The town lies ...
, Grimsby
Grimsby or Great Grimsby is a port town in Lincolnshire, England with a population of 86,138 (as of 2021). It is located near the mouth on the south bank of the Humber that flows to the North Sea. Grimsby adjoins the town of Cleethorpes dir ...
, Market Rasen
Market Rasen ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish within the West Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. The River Rase runs through it east to west, approximately north-east from Lincoln, England, Lincoln, eas ...
and Lincoln. Operated by Stagecoach
A stagecoach (also: stage coach, stage, road coach, ) is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by ...
.
Humberside Airport
Humberside Airport is an international airport at Kirmington in the Borough of North Lincolnshire, England, from three large settlements: Grimsby (east), Kingston upon Hull, Hull (north) and Scunthorpe (west), on the A18 road (England), A18 ...
is also located a short distance to the north of the town.
Media
Television signals are received from either the Emley Moor
The Emley Moor transmitting station is a telecommunications and broadcasting facility on Emley Moor, west of the village centre of Emley, in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England.
It is made up of a concrete tower and apparatus that began ...
or Belmont TV transmitters.
Local radio stations are provided by BBC Radio Humberside, Hits Radio East Yorkshire & North Lincolnshire, Hits Radio Lincolnshire and Greatest Hits Radio East Yorkshire & Northern Lincolnshire.
The town is served by the local newspaper, Grimsby Telegraph
The ''Grimsby Telegraph'' is a daily United Kingdom, British regional newspaper for the town of Grimsby and the surrounding area that makes up North East Lincolnshire including the rural towns of Market Rasen and Louth, Lincolnshire, Louth. The ...
.
Audleby
Audleby is a hamlet just north of Fonaby. It is recorded in the ''Domesday Book'' with 33 households, which at the time constituted a significant settlement. Today it is listed as a deserted medieval village (DMV). Audleby House on Brigg Road is a Grade II listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...
.
Fonaby
Fonaby is a hamlet and deserted medieval village just north of Caistor, mentioned in the ''Domesday Book'' as having 18 households and three acres of meadow, and held by William I William I may refer to:
Kings
* William the Conqueror (–1087), also known as William I, King of England
* William I of Sicily (died 1166)
* William I of Scotland (died 1214), known as William the Lion
* William I of the Netherlands and Luxembour ...
.
Notable people
* Admiral Nigel Malim lived at Caistor.
* Gary Turner, sideshow performer and World Record holder, was born in Caistor.
Local tradition
According to a local tradition, one of Jesus's 12 apostles, Simon the Zealot
Simon the Zealot (, ), also the Canaanite or the Canaanean (, ; ; ; ), was one of the apostles of Jesus. A few pseudepigraphical writings were connected to him, but Jerome does not include him in ''De viris illustribus'' written between 392 a ...
, came to England, where he is supposed to have been martyred somewhere in the vicinity of Caistor. He was reputedly crucified on the orders of a Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of Roman civilization
*Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
procurator called Catus Decianus on 10 May AD61. (However, there are competing theories as to what became of Simon the Zealot.)[Codd, Daniel. ''Mysterious Lincolnshire''. (Breedon Books Publishing Co Ltd). p.12-13. .]
References
External links
Caistor Poor Law Union
Caistor.net
*
*
{{authority control
Towns in Lincolnshire
Civil parishes in Lincolnshire
West Lindsey District