Donington, Lincs

This village has lived in family lore for many years but the last time I visited I was only a very little girl. I have no personal memories but photos show me outside the headmaster's house at this school with my Grandpa, the head there from the 1930s through to 1964.

Obviously the school has undergone a lot of expansion on a small site since then and was pretty much bursting off the campus! It was good to see the place, marvel at the flatness of the surrounding fens and also spend time at the local church (extra) and imagine Grandpa and his family living out their normal lives here.  My Dad and his brothers learnt to ring church bells here - a passion Dad took all through his life - and were initially educated at the school too.  Grandpa has his name inscribed on two new bells added to the ring to make it up to an 8, as he was churchwarden for many years, but unfortunately I couldn't get up to the belfry to take a look. 

I should add that this is the birthplace of Matthew Flinders who first charted the whole of the Australian coast in the 1700s.  The village had his statue in the market place to him and plenty of info in the church, but I will admit to being less attentive to this than I maybe should! I plan to come back and take a further, longer look round instead of just the whistle-stop tour of today.