Osgathorpe Ford
Fords were in use from pre Roman times to allow crossings of water courses and over two thousand crossings have been identified in the UK. These crossing points were the most convenient and safest point to traverse streams or rivers because of the shallow depth of water or its provision of a solid footing.
This crossing may have been the first regular route to cross this stream from Norman times. The other existing crossing point on Main Street does not appear to be suitable from a geographical perspective with no obvious sloping approach. Development of the Village would also influence the location of an early crossing. Many of the earliest buildings and those that remain are located in or around Church Lane and the lower part of Dawsons Road. A natural through route from the North and the closest settlement at that time Belton, would suggest this as a suitable primary crossing point for anything other than foot traffic.
The Ford's early construction would have taken advantage of the natural contours of the approach. With continued use crossings such as this were often stabilised with stone and in later years some form of paving. There appears to be some areas of made up ground under the grass on the south side which may be original and the original crossing may have been deeper and much wider.
The adjacent Bridge was Grade II listed in September 1992, its age being c1800. It is also shown on the 1881 OS map. Brick built bridges were becoming more common from 1800 to 1850 because of the increasing availability of clay bricks. The bricks used are likely to have been made locally, in fact several villagers were identified as brickmakers in local census records in previous years.
The above photograph, estimated to have been taken in the early 19th century, shows the bridge with three arches. The bridge has obviously undergone some reconstruction as it is a single arch structure now.