Oadby (A Guided Walk in Oadby)
"Oadby" is a Guided Walk devised and led by Blue Badge Guide Colin Crosby, of Colin Crosby Heritage Tours.
These strolls are a most enjoyable way of soaking up some Local History.
The walk starts outside St. Peters Church, the parish church of Oadby.
Oadby is a small town to the South of Leicester, which retains some of its rural air despite being now within the Leicester conurbation.
On the outskirts of the town are Leicester's celebrated Racecourse, and the Halls of Residence of Leicester University, including the Harold Martin Botanic Gardens, which every Summer play host to an outdoor exhibition of British sculpture.
The Oadby walk leads through some of the older streets and lanes of the town, noting in passing what is believed to be part of the early defensive ramparts.
Oadby was a Danish settlement, as can be deduced from the suffix "by". There are many villages in Leicestershire ending in "by", which is not surprising as Leicester was one of the important towns of the Danelaw, when England was divided into English England and Danish England.
The villages so named in Leicestershire tend to fall into two groups - those along the Wreake Valley, such as Frisby, Rotherby and Brooksby, and those in a horseshoe shape to the South of Leicester, including Bushby, Blaby and Cosby.
The walk leads through the cemetery and along Lawyers Lane by the Wash Brook. Among the characters discussed will be James Hawker, who wrote a book about his career as a poacher.
Dates, costs and where to meet
A place on 'Oadby' costs £5.00 per person, or £4.00 if paying in advance. The guided walk begins at St. Peters Church, and is running on:
I'm sorry, but there are no plans to run this event at present.
If you would like to book a place on one of these dates, please telephone Colin on (0116) 2611576 or email him at colin@crosbyheritage.co.uk.