Metheringham market cross in a postcard of c.1909 – This is the cross as rebuilt in 1835
Parish/DistrictMetheringham/North Kesteven
LocationRemains now set into the wall near to its original site on Cross Hill – the junction of High St with Princes St
CategoryMarket cross
National Grid RefNow at TF 06905 61409 – Moved from TF 06896 61400 in 1911
DesignationScheduled / Listed II
Stone TypeLimestone
RefsWhite’s Directory, 1856, p.363; Davies D S, 1913, Lincs N & Q, Vol XII No.5, pp. 144-145
VisitsDS/HH 29 June 2006

No market charter is recorded for Metheringham, but it has an ancient market cross and a Saturday market is recorded. White’s 1856 Directory records: ‘An ancient cross which stood in the village, was replaced by a new one in 1835, at the cost of about £25, and a market is now held round it on Saturday evenings’.

The cross stood on Cross Hill – the wide road junction where the High Street and Mill Lane (now Prince’s Street) meet, and is depicted in early photographs and postcards. It seems that the ‘new’ cross of 1835 was actually a rebuilding of the medieval cross and most of the elements of the old cross that survive look medieval in form. It was well described by Davies before it was demolished. It was octagonal in form with three steps diminishing in depth, supporting a cross base with shaft. Davies notes that the upper part of the shaft was replaced in 1835, but the octagonal knop looks original. By the time of the photographs, the cross has a street lamp in place of a cross head.

In 1911 the market cross was replaced by a new cross to commemorate the coronation of George V. The old cross was dismantled and parts of it were used to create a roadside display nearby, which is still in position today. Two steps, the socket stone, parts of the shaft, and the knop are exhibited and other parts of the shaft are also built into the wall in which the monument is displayed. (It is this display which is the scheduled monument/listed structure.)

In 1945, the modern cross was accidentally demolished by a United States Army lorry and in 1949 arrangements were made to replace it. The new design (which also featured a street lamp on its top) was not popular. Photographs of the monument suggest that it incorporated a stone from the base of the knop of the 1911 cross. During the building works, it was realised that a ‘time capsule’ had been placed in the foundations of the 1911 cross (see press reports) and this was replaced along with another set of memorabilia relating to 1949.

In 2011, the unpopular 1940s design was replaced with a facsimile of the 1911 George V coronation cross, but this too suffered accidental demolition when hit by a vehicle in December 2020. The cross was repaired and a new cross head made and fitted, to replace the shattered one.

The George V Coronation cross installed in place of Metheringham Market cross in 1911 – this postcard must date from around the time of its demolition (by a US Army truck) in 1945
When the cross was removed in 1911, this roadside display of its remains was created nearby – and is still there
In 1949, the destroyed 1911 cross was replaced by this modern version with a street lamp on top. It incorporated some stone from the 1911 cross. During its installation it was discovered that a 1911 ‘time capsule’ was beneath it.
Newspaper report in Lincs Echo of of 10 Nov 1949 of the new time capsule buried beneath the cross
In 2011 a new cross – a copy of the 1911 cross – was installed (Photo: Lincolnian Brian)

In Dec 2020, Metheringham’s new cross was demolished in a vehicle collision – It was repaired and the shattered cross head remade and replaced. (Photo: Bonsers Restoration)

Metheringham

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *