Introduction

The documents researched for this project included material already held by Burton Latimer Heritage Society; Censuses up to the last available in 1901; electoral registers from the middle of the 19^th century; trade directories also from the middle of the 19^th century; and any local directories and advertising that could be found.

The greatest difficulty was that before 1918 there are few addresses as we know them today. The trade directories have given the most information from about 1850, but until the 1920s, with just a few exceptions, they just give the name of the trader and their trade. But without them the task would not have been possible, even though there are obviously some errors in them. The names of almost every retailer in the last 150 years have been found, but in many cases in the 19^th and early 20^th century the locations have not been determined due mainly to the lack of an address. Also, the information from different sources is sometimes contradictory, which just adds to the difficulty. In the 19^th and early 20^th centuries, where it has not been possible to determine an accurate result but enough information has been interpreted to give a reasonable possibility of the history of several shops and their owners, this has been included but should be interpreted only as a possibility.

The most interesting and accurate information has been meeting and speaking to the residents of the town who have lived here all their lives, some from as far back as the second decade of the 20^th century. Also my own memories; I was born in the town in the 1930s and have lived here all my life and also worked in retailing in and around the town since the early 1950s.

Because of the amount of material involved, the results from this research have been divided into four sections: A to D, covering over 80 shops and also some of the many businesses run from front rooms and sheds during the early years. Each section will be published when it is considered to be as complete as is possible at the time and will be updated if or when more information is found. They will probably not be in alphabetical order. There will be missing years in the history of some, because information has not been found, or cannot be allocated, or the shop may have been unused over certain periods.

Unexpectedly, the later history from the middle to the end of the 20^th century has proved to be frustratingly difficult, as there is even less recorded information than in the early years. If you are visiting these pages and have worked in a shop, lived near a shop, or have a friend or relative who has, and have information about names and dates (often the most difficult to confirm), please contact us at project@burtonlatimer.info or write to the author, John Langley at 125 Station Road, Burton Latimer, NN15 5PA

A plan of the areas covered by this research. Click on a coloured zone or on the text links below to see the details for that section. Section A Section B Section C Section D Section E Section F