The Old Bakehouse

The Old Bakehouse

ALSO KNOWN AS THE OLD MANOR HOUSE

The Old Bakehouse in the Austerby

One of Bourne's historic buildings rivals the Red Hall as the oldest in the town. The Old Bakehouse at No 76 the Austerby, also known as the Old Manor House, is a Tudor mansion almost in its original condition and was once part of the former residence of the Abbots of Bourne and reputedly constructed with stone from Bourne Castle.

Part of the building was in more recent times used as a bakery and sales shop, hence its name today, but it retains a wealth of original style and fittings. Little is recorded of life in the Abbey of Bourne during the four centuries of its existence but it is known that after its dissolution in 1536, the manor of Bourne Abbots passed into secular hands and eventually came into the possession of the Trollope family early in the 17th century.

This gave them considerable land, farms and houses in Bourne, Cawthorpe and Dyke and this property may well have been among them. The earliest known member of the family was Thomas Trollope who was living at Cawthorpe in 1543, a farmer who was improving his position and rising to the ranks of the gentry through trade.

The Trollopes continued to prosper and purchased the manor of Casewick in 1621. Twenty years later Thomas' great-grandson, also Thomas Trollope, became a baronet and in 1868, the seventh baronet was raised to the peerage as Lord Kesteven.

THE OLD BAKEHOUSE IN PAST TIMES

The bakery which operated from No 74 Austerby during the late 19th and early 20th centuries was owned in 1920 by Mr Frederick Arthur Sandall and although the business was called the Austerby Bakery, local people knew it as Sandall's Bakery. The picture above is from circa 1920 showing the building with the tall bakery chimney on the left. Bread was bought by customers who called at the premises and also delivered to shops and homes by van. Sidney Lawrance joined the firm as a boy straight from school and the picture below was taken on his first day at work in 1921 when he was asked by Mr Burt Sandall, son of the owner, to drive the van even though he was still only a lad in short trousers. He bought his first pair of long trousers when he got his wage packet at the end of that week. Sidney stayed with the firm for several years and the bottom picture shows him at the wheel of the new Morris van in 1927.

Photos: Courtesy Brian Lawrance
An advertisement for the Austerby bakery issued circa 1946 when it was being run by Mr Burt Sandall, son of the original owner whose name was retained. The range of bread and cakes had expanded considerably and the bakery was regarded as one of the best in town. When it closed, the property was restored as a private residence and is still occupied today, changing hands in 2006 after being advertised as the Old Manor House, the second oldest house in Bourne, and with an asking price of £280,000.