b'Village Improvements in the Late 19th CenturyMike PrattG. H. LennardManufacturer, Agent and ImporterJuly 19th 1878 8 & 21 St John Street, HullSir Tatton Sykes BartSledmereSir Tatton,I have just returned from a visit to the rustic village of Bishop Wilton. And with which I was much pleased. But there are one or two little improvements which could easily be made and thus add to its natural charms.At the corner of the road which leads to York etc there stood an old thatched cottage which is partially pulled down. And which if removed entirely and the roadway widened by making a nice wide curve and tapering such widened road off to the junction of the other roads a little way off. And a few trees planted it would look very pretty and also an improved thoroughfare for the traffic.I noticed too that every footway to the Church has 4 or 5 iron bars, not at all proper or graceful for ladies especially to climb over. The interior being so beautiful in adornments, the ways of access should be easy and graceful by neat gate or turnstile.The green banks on either side of the centre stream might have trees planted (dwf) close by the bank or roadway on either side. And would look very graceful down the length of the village at intervals.Is it not also practical to have a fountain or water supply midway from the bridge to the upper half and so from the bridge for the lower half. What I saw of that sweet little fountain bubbling up at the foot of the stone table top, I think it is called, into a trough would give ample supply and plenty of force for both parts. For a permanent supply of pure water for the villagers, besides looking picturesque to visitors.It is gratifying to hear of the great interest you feel in the place and I am quite sure these hints only want to be given to induce you to add to the comfort and beauty of the place.Yours most respectfullyG. H. LennardG. H. LennardP.S. So delighted was I with its simplicity & general interest that I would gladly come over any day you might be there, if you so desired, to point out more plainly what I mean.O ne of the largest collections in the Archives ofreproduced above.the Brynmor Jones Library at the UniversityWe can assume that the writer of the letter, Mr of Hull contains the papers of the Sykes Family ofLennard, visited Bishop Wilton by arrangement Sledmere. A part of this collection contains estateand that he was reporting back to Sir Tatton Sykes correspondence for the period 1655 to 1927. It is splitaccording to an agreed brief. It seems unlikely that he into batches for easier consultation. One such batchwould otherwise presume to make such comments. contains letters to Sir Tatton Sykes, 5th Baronet, forHowever, it is not obvious from the nature of his the period 1874 to 1885 covering a wide range ofbusiness, Manufacturer, Agent and Importer, that topics, including farm purchases, sanitary conditionshe specialised in the areas on which he commented. at Wetwang, formation of the Malton curling club andNevertheless, his comments are instructive.arrangements for a tour of Palestine through CooksThe mention of the thatched cottage and the need travel agency. It all makes fascinating reading andfor road widening can be explored further by looking it is easy to forget that Bishop Wilton is the mainat OS maps from before and after the letter was interest until you come across the kind of letter that iswritten. The OS map of 1854 shows a dwelling on 56 BULLETIN 5'