Lincolnshire Day
Lincolnshire Day is held on October 1st every year.
The current Lincolnshire flag was officially revealed in 2005 following a campaign by BBC Radio Lincolnshire
Steeped in history and with a rich culture of food, festivals and family businesses, Lincolnshire has made its mark on the UK map.
County information
Lincolnshire is located in the East Midlands, surrounded by a number of counties and a 50 mile coastline stretching from the Humber to the Wash and is one of the UK’s largest counties being second in area but 18th by population.
We are bordered by eight other counties (East Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Rutland, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Northamptonshire where its boundary is just 18 metres long - the shortest county boundary in England
The Lincolnshire Wolds has been designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
The Lincolnshire Wolds Walking Festival attracts ramblers from all over the country
East Coast
At the height of summer there are over 100,000 holidaymakers staying in the coastal areas
Skegness has a famous mascot, the ‘Jolly Fisherman‘, whom features on postcards with the slogan “Skegness is so bracing”. Other seaside towns are Cleethorpes, Mablethorpe, and Sutton on Sea.
Donna Nook is home to a regular seal colony that comes to its beaches every year. The seal pup count for 2022 was 2209. The Lincolnshire Trust allows visitors to see the seals in their natural habitat and is a wonderful sight.
The Humber Bridge spans an incredible 7,280 ft and was opened in June 1981
Lincoln
Lincoln was a very important Roman town, known then as Lindum Colonia, and has the only Roman arch in Britain under which traffic is still allowed to travel
Lincoln has two Roman roads running through it: Ermine Street (from London to York) and Fosse Way (from Lincoln to Exeter)
Lincoln Castle is a beautiful Norman castle that was built in the late 11th century by William the Conqueror and is home to one of only four surviving copies of Magna Carta. It houses a Victorian Prison that was featured in episodes of Downton Abbey.
Lincoln Cathedral was the tallest building in the world for 238 years (1311–1549) and is the 4th largest by floor area in the UK.
The Lincoln Imp is a grotesque used by many as a symbol for Lincoln is a carving on the Lincoln Cathedral, said to have been a devil that was turned to stone by an angel.
Lincoln Cathedral has a library designed by Sir Christopher Wren and parts of the Da Vinci Code were filmed in the Chapter House.
Farming and agriculture
Lincolnshire is the UK’s largest producer of potatoes, wheat, cereal and poultry, and is the second largest producer of sugar beet
Over 38% of bulbs grown in the UK come from Lincolnshire.
The county flower is the Common Dog-violet.
There are traditional rare breed farm animals within Lincolnshire.
Lincoln Longwool Sheep produce a fleece of around 20lbs each year. And have really curly long coats.
Lincoln Red Cattle, a distinctive russet red colour produced for meat, dairy and suckler herds.
The Lincoln Curly Coat Pig can still be found on smallholdings.
The Lincolnshire Buff hen was very nearly extinct but brought back in the 80’s.
The Lincolnshire Show began in 1869 and is a great meeting place for farmers to meet up in June and show off their fantastic farming prowess and perhaps you might hear some of the traditional Lincolnshire dialect here too. There is a ‘champion of the local dialect‘ Farmer Wink can often be heard speaking in his native tongue.
Planes
The only airport in Lincolnshire is Humberside Airport.
Lincolnshire had more airfields than any other county during World War Two. It was known as Bomber County and pilots returning from raids over Germany used Lincoln Cathedral as a landmark to guide them home. Bomber Command can now been seen on the approach to Lincoln.
We are home to The Red Arrows and The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight
The Waddington Air Show was one of largest air shows in the UK held just outside Lincoln.
Burghley House near Stamford holds the world-famous Burghley Horse Trials every year
Pride and Prejudice was filmed at Burghley House in 2005 along with many other movies including Elizabeth: The Golden Age, Middlemarch, and Bleak House to mention just a few.
Boston
Many of the Pilgrim Fathers whom founded America set sail from Boston in the 17th Century. Its most notable landmark is “The Stump”. St Botolphs Church stands proud in the centre of the town.
Famous people from Lincolnshire.
Comedian Jennifer Saunders was born in Sleaford, Lincolnshire
Harry Potter actor Jim Broadbent is from Lincolnshire
The first Briton to perform a space walk, Michael Foale, was born here
Alfred, Lord Tennyson was born and raised in Somersby in the Lincolnshire Wolds
At his home at Woolsthorpe Manor, near Grantham, that Sir Isaac Newton began to devise his Laws on Gravitation, after reputedly watching apples fall from a tree in the garden
Grantham was the birthplace of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
Food and Drink
Poacher Cheese has won several awards over the years for its flavour. As an aside ‘The Lincolnshire Poacher’ song is the unofficial county anthem.
Cote Hill Cheese is handcrafted and they make Yellow and Blue
Lincolnshire was without a Gin distillery until 2016 when Bottomley Distillers created Pin Gin and several more distilleries have popped up since.
The Lincolnshire Sausage Festival is held every year in October at Lincoln Castle. Lincolnshire sausages appear to date back to 1886 although a Grimsby butcher claimed their recipe was as far back as 1810. Either way is a tasty coarse ground pork sausage flavoured with sage, salt, and pepper.
Grimsby Smoked Fish achieved protected status in 2009. The Grimsby Fishing Heritage Centre is open to the public and from September 2023 the docks are being opened for Heritage Open Days.
Lincolnshire plum bread is a delicious fruit bread served traditionally with cheese.
Haslet is a Lincolnshire delicacy very similar to sausage but made into ovals and sliced and eaten cold with pickles or as a sandwich filling.
Stuffed Chine is a particular favourite with many. The neck chine pork meat cut is preserved and cured, deeply scored and stuffed with parsley. Once cooked it is sliced and gives the traditional alternate meat and parsley stripes. Definitely an acquired taste!
Traditions and old wives tales
An old Lincolnshire tradition said that front doors were used for only three things: a new baby, a bride, and a coffin
Lincolnshire Yellowbellies - where did they get their name?
Lincolnshire yellowbellies’ still discuss and debate the origins of where the name came from;
Here’s just a few suggestions…….
The Royal North Lincolnshire Militia
The building on Burton Road, Lincoln, now home to the Museum of Lincolnshire Life was once the barracks of the Royal North Lincolnshire Militia. The officers of this regiment would wear bright yellow waistcoats on the battlefield. This made it easier for their men to spot them also earned them the name Lincolnshire Yellowbellies.
Newts and frogs
There is, apparently a breed of newt common to the fens that has a bright yellow underside.
Should you not be very partial to newts, Marion Christy who is a yellowbelly herself, was always told that it was frogs that had the yellow bellies and were rather partial to the damp conditions of the undrained fens.
Farmers
During summer the farmers would often work without their shirts on. As they tended the fields they would be bent over, and get a lovely suntan on their back. Their fronts however would be in the shadows the whole time and so would stay white. The reflection of the corn is said to have given a yellow hue to their bellies.
Mail Coach
The mail coach that ran from Lincoln to London had a yellow undercarriage. Upon it's arrival in London it is said that the locals would call out "Here comes the Lincolnshire yellowbelly".
Sheep
The traditional breed of sheep in the county is the Lincoln Longwool. As the name suggests, it's fleece was, well, long. It looked rather like the sheep in question had a bad perm.
These sheep would often graze in the fields of mustard that were once a common sight around Lincolnshire. As their shaggy coat dragged along the ground it would pick up pollen from the mustard flowers and give them, you've guessed it, a yellow belly.
Just a few facts all about Lincolnshire
Thanks for reading
Mel x