Greyfriars, Lincoln

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The Greyfriars, Lincoln
Greyfriars, Lincoln - geograph.org.uk - 106215.jpg
The Greyfriars, Lincoln
LocationThe building is adjacent to the Central Library and lies between Free School Lane and Broadgate, Lincoln.
Coordinates 53°13′45″N0°32′13″W / 53.2293°N 0.5370°W / 53.2293; -0.5370 Coordinates: 53°13′45″N0°32′13″W / 53.2293°N 0.5370°W / 53.2293; -0.5370
OS grid reference SK9775971248
Foundedc1230
Built13th century, with mid-19th century additions.
Restored1906
Architect William Watkins
Architectural style(s) Early English architecture
Listed Building – Grade I
Designated8 October 1953
Reference no.485917
Lincolnshire UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location in Lincolnshire

The Greyfriars, Lincoln was a Franciscan friary in Lincolnshire, England. The surviving building is the remains of the infirmary of the friary, built of dressed stone and brick and dating from c.1230, with mid 19th century additions. [1]

Contents

History

Franciscan Friary

Building of the Friary was started in 1237 on land donated to the Franciscan order and was completed by the 1280s. The community was expelled in 1538 as part of the Dissolution of the Monasteries.

Burials in the friary

Grammar School and Mechanics' Institute

The Undercroft Greyfriars Undercroft (geograph 3267963).jpg
The Undercroft

The building was let to William Monson, whose son Richard opened a school there in 1568. From 1574 the school became the Corporation Grammar School run by Lincoln City Council on the upper floor until 1900. [2] The undercroft was successively used as a spinning school which became known as the Jersey School until 1831, a Mechanics' Institute from 1833 to 1862 and as part of the Grammar School from 1862 to 1899. [2] George Boole participated in the Mechanics' Institute. [3] [4]

City and County Museum

The ruins of St Swithin's Church and the Greyfriars, Lincoln c.1784 Greyfriars, Lincoln.png
The ruins of St Swithin's Church and the Greyfriars, Lincoln c.1784

Under Lincoln City Council

In 1900 the building ceased to be used as a school. It was restored under the supervision of Lincoln architect William Watkins. It was opened to the public as the City and County Museum on 22 May 1907. [5] The Museum was administered by the City of Lincoln and the first Curator was Arthur Smith who retired in 1934 and was followed by F. T. (Tom) Baker, [6] who was the son of the Lincoln architect Fred Baker.

Lincolnshire County Council

In 1974 control of the Museum passed to Lincolnshire County Council. In September 1993 the museum's use of Greyfriars changed with the building becoming a venue for annually changing exhibitions while its main collections underwent a programme of conservation and research in expectation of a new home being built.[ citation needed ] In 2005, The Collection opened on a new site on Danesgate, adjacent to the Usher Gallery, with the two being jointly managed as a cultural centre for art and archaeology. [7]

After closure the building was used for a period by the Central Library, but from 2008 has been left vacant, apart from occasional use for contemporary art exhibitions and installations. In 2016 the city council considered selling the building. [8]

Literature

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. "Greyfriars' Museum, Lincoln". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 11 February 2014.
  2. 1 2 "The Greyfriars". Lincoln City Council. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
  3. Francis Hill (1974), Victorian Lincoln; p.149
  4. Society for the History of Astronomy, Lincolnshire.
  5. Lincolnshire Echo - Tuesday 23 May 1911
  6. "Baker (1985), pg 10
  7. "History of the museum on The Collection website". Archived from the original on 2014-02-25. Retrieved 2020-01-03.
  8. "Former museum to be sold". City of Lincoln Council. Lincoln City Council. Retrieved 8 January 2017.