Cattle, sheep, pigs and poultry are preparing to return to the town centre – as sculptures or murals – and your help is requested for it.
Transported Arts have teamed up with the Spalding Civic Society for the Mark It Trail.
For their next display they would like Spalding residents to share their memories of cattle markets in the town to help form a word mosaic as part of that project.
Among the stories already told are John Honnor’s memories of the ‘bullock-whappers’ that controlled the cattle and of having wanted to go to see the chickens and rabbits being sold.
John Tippler and his mum were among the panicking crowd in Sheep Market when an angry pig broke out of its pen and charged towards the post office.
“The sales ring building became the Spalding Boy Scouts’ office headquarters at one point,” said John. “When the livestock market ceased in 1992, the council sold the sales-ring building to Birchgrove Garden Centre for £1 – where it can still be seen.”
Marian Boxall recalls nearly slipping into an open manhole when chasing about there with her friends after school as muck and straw were being sluiced away.
A spokesman for the Spalding Civic Society said: “The society hopes Spalding residents would like to share their memories, to create a sort of word mosaic of what was once an important part of Spalding life and heritage.
“They could be personal memories or stories heard from grandparents or older relatives.
“The memories and stories are still there.
“The Civic Society hopes that people would like to share them.”
To do so you can put them on paper, memory stick and disk and write to The Secretary, Spalding and District Civic Society, 78a Edinburgh Drive, Spalding, PE11 2RT or email marianboxall@gmail.com
For audio memories contact 01775 725293 to mention that you will be sending them across.
