Thealby Walk - 3.5 miles (5.63 km)

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: Thealby walk leaflet

1. Starting at the Parish Office, turn left into the High Street. Walk past the cottages to the curve in the road & bearing left carry on up Normanby Road
2. Pass “Avenue Cottage” on the right, opposite the entrance to Burton Primary School; continue to the junction with Wiltshire Avenue. Note the small concrete obelisk, placed there in 1940 as a gun mounting, to be used to repel any possible invading enemy forces.
3. Turn left up Wiltshire Avenue. Cross the road at the entrance of the Playing Field. Turn left towards the bowls club/burial ground.
4. At the bowls club, turn right along the footpath past the burial ground and allotments (the playing field will be on your right)
5. Keeping to the footpath, cross over a small wooden bridge. On your left is where Catherine's Wood used to be.
6. Continue along the path, with open fields and hedgerow until it meets the road to Thealby. The fine buildings of Normanby Grange can be seen over to the right. At this point turn left, along the road and continue until you reach the hamlet of Thealby.
7. In Thealby there are a number of houses & cottages that are well worth studying. As you enter the village, on the right is the blacksmith's forge and opposite you can see a dove-cote.
8. Continuing along the main road, notice the striking Methodist Chapel on the right, now converted into a home.
9. The triangle of grass at the junction of the road to Winterton, is the site of the ancient Thealby pinfold. Turn left, following the curve of the road. Pass the charming 'Greenhill' on your left (parts dating back to the 18th century) and on your right, Thealby Hall, home of Sir Reginald Sheffield.
10. Continue up the road, passing farm buildings, open fields and a small pump house. Just before entering Burton upon Stather, note the cottages on the right. Built with different bricks, they were originally part of the ancient hamlet of Darby.
11. Entering the village, pass Wiltshire Ave on your left. Tee Lane is on your right. Note another small obelisk, placed there in 1940, as a gun mounting. Continue along Darby Road. When you reach the sharp 'S' bend, note the fine 'Old Vicarage' on the right and ahead the entrance to the churchyard of St Andrew's Church which dates from 1160. Following the bend in the road, pass the magnificent 'Sheffield Arms', built in 1687 and the road leading down the Stather. Keep left to rejoin the High Street.

Pinfold

The pinfold was an area allocated in each village for the safe keeping of stray cattle. The strays were usually rounded up and cared for by a 'pinderman' who would hand over the strays to their owners on demand. Thus the derivation of the name 'Pinder'

Grass Verges

Those on the road from Thealby to Burton and most likely others in the Parish, were let by tender each year for the grazing of cattle