The funfair arrives in Bourne at the end of October every year and it is easy to imagine the delight in the hearts of hundreds of children awaiting with eager anticipation their visit to this wonderland of sights and sounds although most adults doubt that it is the same as it was, but then as we grow older, we firmly believe that things never are as they were.
English fairs have a long and honoured tradition and have always been associated with merrymaking.
In fact the name itself fair is derived from the Latin feria meaning a holiday but their object was a serious one and far removed from the swings and roundabouts we see today. Fairs meant commerce and as many were established by the grant of a Royal Charter, the right to hold them became highly prized. There is no evidence of such distinguished approval for a fair at Bourne but a Royal Charter was granted to Baldwin Wake, then Lord of the Manor, by King Edward I in 1279 enabling him hold a weekly market every Saturday and extract tolls from those who came to sell their wares. These rights passed to the Cecil family in 1564 and in recent times were acquired from the Marquess of Exeter by South Kesteven District Council who continue to hold markets on Thursdays and Saturdays. There is also evidence that until 1803 the town had a stone market cross on the west side of the market place, ten feet high with an octagonal shaft and three steps at its base, around which the goods from farms and villages were brought in for sale such as butter, cheese and poultry, and visitors travelled in from miles around to buy their produce.