Shearsby

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Shearsby
Shearsby - geograph.org.uk - 2268904.jpg
Shearsby
Shearsby is located in Leicestershire
Shearsby
Shearsby
Location within Leicestershire
Area1.76 sq mi (4.6 km2)
Population240 (2011)[1]
• Density136/sq mi (53/km2)
OS grid referenceSP623908
• London85 mi (137 km)
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townLEICESTER
Postcode districtLE8
Dialling code0116
PoliceLeicestershire
FireLeicestershire
AmbulanceEast Midlands
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Leicestershire
52°30′45″N 1°04′58″W / 52.512426°N 1.0828282°W / 52.512426; -1.0828282Coordinates: 52°30′45″N 1°04′58″W / 52.512426°N 1.0828282°W / 52.512426; -1.0828282

Shearsby is a rural village in the English county of Leicestershire. Shearsby is in the Harborough district around nine miles due south of Leicester and north east of Lutterworth. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 240.[1]

History[]

In the early 17th century the Vicar of St Mary Magdelene, and Rector of Knaptoft was John Moore, a Puritan who wrote A Mappe of Man's Mortalite in 1617 and often struggled to maintain his principles against the authorities within the Church of England. In November 1604 he was brought before the ecclesiastical court for nonconformity, refusing to wear the surplice, and summoned a further four more times in 1605. He was finally discharged by the court in 'hope of conformity'.[2]

The Church of St Mary Magdelene

Not long after the Enclosure Act of 1773, it was recorded that 1,100 acres of land in and around Shearsby now belonged to the lord of the manor, George Turvile, esq.[3] During a visit by the author and publisher John Nichols, he noted that four church bells were left stood in the church chancel. He was to learn that one of these bells originated from the ruined church of Knaptoft, and that this bell (originally destined for the church in Aylestone, Leicester) was appropriated by locals while the Aylestone tenants (charged with transporting the bell) stopped to take a drink in Shearsby.[3]

Shearsby Spa[]

The Bath Hotel outside the village of Shearsby is the site of what was once Shearsby Spa. A holy well on the road south and west of the village, between the main Leicester-Northampton road (now the A5199) and Bruntingthorpe, was converted into a spa that was popular during the first half of the 19th century. The waters were held to be efficacious in treating skin diseases, indigestion, rheumatism, bilious and nervous disorders. Analysis of the mineral content revealed the major constituents to be sodium sulphate and sodium chloride.[4] As late as 1927 it was still possible to come here for treatment, at Leicestershire's last spa.[5] Today the 'Bath Hotel and Shearsby Spa' (

 WikiMiniAtlas
SP621900) is what remains of the site.

Buildings[]

A number of the old cottages in the village are built of locally hand-made brick, and these bricks can be distinguished in the village by their variations in size and shape.[6] There is one Grade II* and 8 Grade II Listed structures in Shearsby. These include: Cobblestones, Back Lane; Woodbine Cottage, Main Street; Rose Cottage, Mill Lane; and a Milepost, 500 yards north of Shearsby Road (

 WikiMiniAtlas
SP624915). On Church Lane there is Bean Hill Farmhouse and garden wall, Limetree Cottage, Yeomans Cottage, Wheathill Farmhouse and Little Wheathill. The Church of St. Mary Magdalene is a Grade II* Listed building.[7]

Sport and Leisure[]

Shearsby Valley Lakes is an established coarse fishery centre which includes 4 lakes, a Tackle Shop and Licensed Cafe on site off Saddington Road.

Shearsby cricket: It is not known when Shearsby first took to the field, but a match report in the Leicester Chronicle show's Shearsby winning against Broughton Astley on a match dated 29th August 1870.[8] Today, Shearsby fields an occasional Sunday friendly XI side against neighbouring village teams in and around the area.[9]

References[]

  1. ^ a b "Shearsby Parish Local Area Report". nomisweb.co.uk. nomis official labour market statistics. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  2. ^ Copson, Stephen (1994). "The Identification of a Parliamentary Army Chaplain: John Moore of Leicestershire" (PDF). Transactions of Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society. 68: 94–97. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  3. ^ a b Nichols, John (1790). The supplementary volume to the Leicestershire views: containing a series of excursions in the year 1790, to the villages and places of note in the county. United Kingdom -- England -- Leicestershire: Printed for the author by J. Nichols. p. 196.
  4. ^ Nuttall, Gertrude Clarke (1907). A Guide to Leicester and District. Edward Shardlow, St. Martin's, Leicester.
  5. ^ Bennett, J D (1993). "Leicestershire Spas" (PDF). Leicestershire Historian. 4 (1): 9. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  6. ^ Reynolds, Martin (2015). Shearsby Village History (Past and Present) (PDF). Shearsby: Shearsby Parish Council. p. 5.
  7. ^ "Listed Buildings in Shearsby, Leicestershire". britishlistedbuildings.co.uk. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  8. ^ "Broughton Astley". Leicester Chronicle. 10 September 1870. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  9. ^ "Cricket Arnesby v Shearsby". village-web.co.uk. 26 June 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2022.

Links[]

See also[]

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