Alongside the old railway line and bridge on the corner of Ings Lance and A170 you will find a row of horse chestnut trees. Originally there were seven and over the decades the history of these trees has been diminished in line with the number of trees.
Local memory recalled that these horse chestnut trees were planted from conkers brought back from the Crimean War by local veterans such as Joseph Sleightholme whose grave is marked with a headstone carved with an image of his medals presented for his service in the 1854-56 war.
Horse chestnuts are native to the Balkan peninsula, and it is believed they were planted to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Jubilee. However, as time has passed, the trees have suffered from modern developments, such as a new roundabout to storms, which brought them down.
Recently one of the three remaining trees was deemed to be unsafe and had to be removed. Obviously, such as significant tree being removed caused a lot of concern in the town, and to try and ensure the community memory of their origins was not lost, the history group stepped in to preserve a section of the tree.
After three years drying out naturally, the slice is now ready for preservation and display. However, the project will require support from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Town Council in terms of finance and planning.
We hope to display the section of the trunk within a sealed stand, which will protect the wood from further deterioration. And the hope is to locate it within the vicinity of the original site.
Watch this space for more developments.