Little Barford
Timeline
Places > Little Barford
1267: Four people drowned when trying to cross the river by ferry when it was very high. A few years later the ferryman was drowned in similar circumstances.
14th Century: The Norman south doorway survives from the original 12th
century church. The north arcade and the arches to the tower and chancel date
from the early 14th century and in the mid 14th century a chapel was added on
the end of the chancel.
1674: Nicholas Rowe, minor dramatist and poet laureate born in the cottage in the village. He was appointed to the post of Poet Laureate in 1715 and when he died in 1718 at the age of 44 he was buried in the Poet's Corner of Westminster Abbey.
1778: Little Barford Enclosure Act.
1869: The chancel was rebuilt.
1872: The village school built for 38 children.
1945-47: Little Barford Power Power Station built.
1946: Village School closes.
1968: The church no longer used for worship.
1972: The church closed and vested in the Redundant Churches Funs on the 14th November.
1985: Little Barford Power Station closes.
1989: Little Barford Power Station demolished.
1994: The first two chimneys topping National Power's 250 million gas fired power station lifted into place. (Biggleswade Chronicle, 8th April 1994)
Sources:
- The newspapers cuttings collection at Bedford Central Library.
- PICKFORD, C. Bedfordshire Churches in the 19th Century. Beds Historical Record Soc. Vol.73 1994.
Page last updated: 3rd February 2014