7-13 Bridge Street, Horncastle
A very exciting project is emerging in a small market town in Lincolnshire. Horncastle is only a few miles from Sir Joseph Banks's Revesby Estate and he was the town's Lord of the Manor. It is an ideal location to establish a centre promoting the importance of Sir Joseph Banks and, through him, the strong historic links the county shares with Australia.
The Sir Joseph Banks Centre will be situated in a grade II listed building recently restored by the Heritage Trust of Lincolnshire. This grading means that the building, which dates back to the 1700's, has architectural merit and that the restoration work has to meet the high standards set by the national conservation body English Heritage. The soon to be established Sir Joseph Banks Society will be based there. With the space available we intend to offer research facilities available to the public, although specific research projects will be undertaken on behalf of the Society. In addition we hope to develop a garden as a tribute to Banks that will be a quiet haven for visitors and provide the opportunity to purchase rare and unusual plants. We also hope to have a small shop selling books and souvenirs.
Lincolnshire, through Sir Joseph and other explorers from this county, has an historic connection with Australia that we wish to strengthen. One of the centre's first research projects will be to find details of those convicts transported from Lincolnshire to Australia in an effort to find their descendants both here and there.
The Captain Cook Society and the Sir Joseph Banks Society have mutual interests and I am delighted to have this opportunity to introduce our objectives. We will be creating a website which should be launched around April 2007 but in the meantime we can be contacted at the address below.
Jean Burton, Sir Joseph Banks Centre, 7 Bridge Street, Horncastle, Lincolnshire, UK