Where History Walks

by John Keeble

I walked through the stage of my day, the High Street of historic Linton near Cambridge, and saw in my mind the Civil War soldiers bloody, the coaching horses sweaty, the First World War veterans proud or dead, and the scores of thousands of ghosts of two millennia’s workers and artists, officials and writers, celebrated scientists and notorious drunks. It was a journey of a different kind: no leaving on a jet plane, no trip to the present delights of the modern world. It was a journey into the past, into who I am as part of this effervescent mass we like to characterise as vital individuals as we put aside the transient nature of our walk-on earthly roles.

The stage was the new Linton Heritage Trail – a walk through the historic part of the village where buildings have survived momentous events dating back to the 14th century and, beneath many of them, hundreds of years before then. It is an expression of the village’s pride in its long and distinguished past, put together by the Historical Society, the village historian Garth Collard and two parish councillors, Mike Gee and fellow Mensan Enid Bald.

‘It is a wonderful walk, accessible to all,’ Enid promised me. ‘Just what an idle beggar like you needs on a cold day.’ She was right.

The walk started at the river bridge – the crossing was a major reason why the village developed in Roman and Saxon times – and passed all the pubs as it introduced 48 mouth-wateringly fascinating buildings and their stories. There was plenty of help with the route: a booklet with its fold-out illustrated map (£2) provided a building-by-building briefing: Richmond, where the Cavaliers mustered in 1648 before marching to battle; Swann Cottages, an inn around 1616; Dodger’s Lane where miscreants ‘dodged’ to avoid going to church; Chandler’s house dating from the 15th century; Millicent House, once home to the manorial lords; the kissing gate and enchanting St Mary’s Church first documented in 1163; 16th Century Guildhall whose tenants have included the Nobel Prize scientist John Kendrew… and my favourite, for its past occupants: Queen’s House, where Graham Greene lived and a few decades later psychic Matthew Manning charted his ghostly experiences in his book, The Link.

It was a good walk, though others might want to drink coffee en route at the Dog & Duck which looks and feels like all its history since the 16th century despite a recent refurbishment after flooding a few years ago… or maybe lunch at today’s Crown Inn. All in all, an historically enjoyable time. Though, spending the day with the ghosts dating back to Romans and Saxons, it did rather knock my feeling of being the sole centre of the universe.

First published in VISA 95 (Feb 2011)