Dowsby

Dowsby Hall is an early 17th-century house situated in Dowsby, Lincolnshire, England, and 6 miles (10 km) to the north of Bourne. Originally a much grander house, attributed to the architect John Thorpe, it was converted to farm house in the late 18th century. It is listed Grade II*. From about 1920 to 1987, it was the home of Henry Burtt, who suggested the idea of the radio programme The Archers to the BBC producer Godfrey Baseley.

Rippingale railway station was a station serving the villages of Rippingale, Dowsby and Dunsby, Lincolnshire on the Great Northern Railway Bourne and Sleaford railway. It opened in 1872 and closed to passengers in 1930. The section from Bourne through Rippingale to Billingborough remained open for goods until 1964.The station building is now a private residence.

Pointon is a village in the civil parish of Pointon and Sempringham, in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. In 2021 the parish of "Pointon and Sempringham" has a population of 533. The majority of the parish's population live in Pointon. It is situated 7 miles (11.3 km) north of Bourne. Pointon is part of the ecclesiastical parish of Pointon and Sempringham. Christchurch, in Pinfold Lane, Pointon, is a 'tin tabernacle' of wood and corrugated iron; it was erected in 1893 as a chapel of ease. The parish church, dedicated to Saint Andrew, is in Sempringham. In 1885, a Kelly's Directory noted Pointon as being in the then parish of Sempringham-cum-Pointon and Birthorpe, with St Andrew's church "situated on an eminence, overlooking the Fen district, about half a mile from any residence now existing". A 1916 Lincolnshire guidebook noted: "The parish church (St Andrew) stands on a hill nearly 1 m. from its principal hamlet of Pointon".St Gilbert of Sempringham C of E Primary School, on West Road, dates from 1863. Pointon was formerly a chapelry in the parish of Sempringham, in 1866 Pointon became a separate civil parish, on 1 April 1931 the parish was abolished to form "Pointon and Sempringham". In 1921 the parish had a population of 405.

Dunsby is a small village and civil parish in the South Kesteven district of in Lincolnshire, England. It is 4 miles (6.4 km) north from Bourne, just east off the A15, and on the western edge of the Lincolnshire Fens. In 2001 it had a population of 141, reducing to 122 at the 2011 census.The Grade I listed parish church is dedicated to All Saints. Built of ironstone and limestone, it dates from the 12th century, and was restored in 1857. The church is part of the Ringstone in Aveland group of the Deanery of Beltisloe, Diocese of Lincoln. The vicar was the Revd Dr Lynda Pugh between 2012 and 2018. The incumbent is the Revd Neil Bullen.The village cross is a medieval scheduled monument sited at a road junction in the village, and consists of the base and 8 inches (20 cm) of shaft.Dunsby is mentioned in the Domesday Book under the name of Dunesbe.

Rippingale is a village and civil parish in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. The population of the civil parish was 929 at the 2011 census. The village is situated on the A15 road, about 5 miles (8 km) north from Bourne.Rippingale is part of the Ringstone in Aveland group of the Deanery of Beltisloe, Diocese of Lincoln. The vicar was the Revd Dr Lynda Pugh between 2012 and 2018. The incumbent is the Revd Neil Bullen. St Andrew's Church dates from the fourteenth century, though the tower is later. The village public house is The Bull Inn. A railway station on a line between Bourne and Sleaford opened in 1871 for goods and closed in 1964; regular passenger services lasted from 1872 to 1930.Rippingale falls within the drainage area of the Black Sluice Internal Drainage Board.South of the village is the site of Ringstone, a lost village, which dates from before the Norman conquest and which survived into the 19th century as Ringstone Hall.TF094270 Rippingale has a village design statement produced by a Village Design Statement Committee. The committee was established by parish councillor Marcus Petz to produce guidance for South Kesteven District Council (SKDC). The statement was adopted in 2002.

The Church of St Andrew in Rippingale, Lincolnshire, England, is a Grade I–listed Anglican church. The earliest phase of the church dates back to the mid-13th Century.

Pointon and Sempringham is a civil parish in the English county of Lincolnshire. Forming part of the non-metropolitan district of South Kesteven its main populated places are Sempringham, Pointon and Millthorpe. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 532.

Sempringham Priory was a priory in Lincolnshire, England, located in the medieval hamlet of Sempringham, to the northwest of Pointon. Today, all that remains of the priory is a marking on the ground where the walls stood and a square, which are identifiable only in aerial photos of the vicinity. However, the parish church of St Andrew's, built around 1100 AD, is witness to the priory standing alone in a field away from the main road.The priory was built by Gilbert of Sempringham, the only English saint to have founded a monastic order. The priory's religious accentuation as an important religious pilgrimage site began when St Gilbert established the Gilbertine Order in 1131 by inducting "seven maidens" who were his pupils. Alexander, Bishop of Lincoln, helped in establishing the religious buildings to the north of St Andrew's Church as a protected area.St Gilbert died at Sempringham in 1189 and was buried in the priory church. He was canonised on 13 October 1202, for the many miracles noted at his tomb in the priory. His name is prefixed to the Sempringham Priori, which is known as "St Gilbert Sempringham Priory," and is thus a well-visited pilgrimage centre. The priory, which functioned as a dual community made up of canons and nuns, was dissolved in 1538. The Clinton family, who took possession of the priory, demolished it completely without leaving any trace of it on the ground. They built a mansion from the building material they extracted from the demolished structure.

Sempringham is a village in the civil parish of Pointon and Sempringham, in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It is situated 2 miles (3.2 km) south from the A52 road, 12 miles (19 km) east from Grantham and 8 miles (13 km) north from Bourne. The hamlet is on the western edge of the Lincolnshire Fens, the closest village being Billingborough, 0.5 miles (0.80 km) to the north on the B1177 road. Sempringham is noted as the home of Gilbert of Sempringham, the son of the lord of the manor. Gilbert is the only English Saint to have founded a monastic order, the Gilbertines. In 1921 the parish had a population of 112. On 1 April 1931 the parish was abolished to form "Pointon and Sempringham".Sempringham consists of a church and a holy well, with other houses east from the church scattered along the B1177 between Pointon and Billingborough. The church stands at an altitude of about 52 feet (16 m), on land rising out of flat fenland. Pointon is the chief township of the civil parish, which includes Millthorpe and the fens of Pointon, Neslam and Aslackby, and a part of Hundred Fen at Gosberton Clough. Formerly, Birthorpe, now part of Billingborough, was included in the parish. The parish church is a Grade I listed building, dedicated to Saint Andrew and dating from 1170. It was restored and the chancel rebuilt in 1868-69 by Edward Browning.Sempringham is noted in the Domesday account as "Stepingeham" in the Aveland Hundred of Kesteven. In 1086 the manor consisted of 35 households, 8 villagers, 2 smallholders and 14 freemen, with 4.3 ploughlands, a meadow of 11 acres (0.045 km2) and woodland of 7 acres (0.028 km2). In 1066 Earl Morcar was Lord of the Manor, which was transferred to Jocelyn, son of Lambert in 1086, with Tenant-in-chief as Alfred of Lincoln.In the early 17th century, Sempringham was a centre of the Puritan movement in Lincolnshire. Samuel Skelton, curate of Sempringham, sailed to Massachusetts Bay in 1628 with the first group of Puritan settlers, who landed in Salem. Another member of the Sempringham congregation at the time was the young Anne Dudley, later Anne Bradstreet, the colony's first published poet.

Aslackby Preceptory in Lincolnshire lay to the south-east of Aslackby Church. Until about 1891 a tower, possibly of the preceptory church, together with a vaulted undercroft, survived as part the Temple farmhouse. Temple farmhouse was subsequently rebuilt and a 15th-century window and a stone pinnacle remain in the garden

Birthorpe is a hamlet in the civil parish of Billingborough, in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It is situated less than 1 mile (2 km) west from Billingborough and the B1177 Pointon Road, and 2 miles (3 km) east from Folkingham. Birthorpe was formerly in the parish of Semperingham, in 1866 Birthorpe became a separate civil parish, on 1 April 1931 the parish was abolished and merged with Billingborough. In 1921 the parish had a population of 46.Birthorpe is regarded as a shrunken medieval village. The Manor House and farm house are listed buildings.There was a substantial manor here well before 1300: the family who owned it took their name from the village. The most notable family member was Roger de Birthorpe (died c.1345), who had a distinguished career as a judge in Ireland, becoming Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer in 1327. Roger was a somewhat controversial figure, who fled to Ireland after being outlawed for his part in a private war with Sempringham Priory, but eventually received a royal pardon. Birthorpe passed to the Deyncourt family before 1343.

St James the Great Church is a Grade I listed Church of England parish church dedicated to James, son of Zebedee in Aslackby, Lincolnshire, England. The church is 7 miles (11 km) north from Bourne, and in the Aslackby and Laughton parish on the eastern edge the South Kesteven Lincolnshire Vales. The church is significant for its historic association with the Aslackby Preceptory of the Knights Templar, and its unusual arch details in the tower. St James' is in the ecclesiastical parish of Aslackby, and one of six churches in the Billingborough Group of Parishes, with their associated churches, in the Deanery of Lafford and the Diocese of Lincoln. Other churches in the group are: St Andrew's Church, Horbling; St Andrew's Church, Billingborough; St Andrew's Church, Sempringham; St Andrew's Church, Dowsby; and Christchurch, Pointon. The Group constitutes the Gilbertine Benefice. St James' is within the Aslackby conservation area.