Pilgrims & Prophets Christian Heritage Tours have a new YouTube channel, sharing films and talks based on local Christian heritage in and around North Nottinghamshire.
Habblesthorpe – The Lost Village With Baptist History We explore the lost Nottinghamshire village of Habblesthorpe and its links to the early Baptists. We discover tress, bushes and some graves, plus links to Baptist founders John Smyth and Thomas Helwys from the early 1600s.
Littleborough. Romans, Kings & Saints Littleborough is a small Nottinghamshire village with a remarkable history stretching back 2000 years. In this tour, local historian Adrian Gray explores the village’s hidden past – from early Roman times to present day. We follow in the footsteps of Kings, Saints and Christians who came to this place on the banks of the River Trent.
The Nottinghamshire Prophetess (1641) In 1641, two young women died suddenly after a wedding – but one came back from the dead, prophesying terrible things if England did not repent. Then, a few days later, she died again. Historian Adrian Gray investigates this bizarre story from a turbulent era.
The Battling Puritan – Richard Bernard Richard Bernard was a puritan nonconformist, sometime a separatist, who battled away against the Church authorities in early 1600s England. He knew the Mayflower Pilgrim leaders, the men who began the English Baptist Church, was the father in law of Roger Williams of Rhode Island and probably influenced John Bunyan. Adrian Gray tells his life story.
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The first national Christian Heritage Conference took place at The Well, in Retford, on Friday 11th March 2016. This marked the start of an annual event, aimed at attracting national and international delegates, with a wide range of interests and approaches.
Adrian Gray addressing the conference
Retford, with its central positioning within the UK, its rich heritage, with national and world impact, and its excellent transport links, made it a prime location to host the conference.
Among the key findings were that non-Christian tourists, as well as Christian visitors, want to visit Christian Heritage sites, and the accessibility of well-maintained clean toilets is critically important for successful tourist locations.
Twenty-seven delegates from around the UK engaged enthusiastically at the conference, which enabled the sharing of information between organisations with a common purpose, but a range of approaches, focuses and backgrounds. Feedback was very positive with delegates looking forward to working together and returning to next year’s conference in Retford.
Paul James-Griffiths, Christian Heritage, Edinburgh
Gillian Crawley, Old Rectory Epworth
Anthea Moat, Notts Historic Churches Trust
The conference was opened by local historian, Adrian Gray, who welcomed delegates from Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Cheshire, Cornwall, Edinburgh, Lincolnshire, London, Nottinghamshire and Yorkshire.
Adrian outlined the rich and varied Christian Heritage to be found within approximately 30 miles of Retford, including the leaders of the Mayflower Pilgrims and the Separatist movement, the founders of the Baptist, Congregational and Methodist Churches, the Salvation Army, and the first Quaker martyr.
Each delegate shared information about their organisation, with some fascinating insights:
William Booth, Salvation Army founder, was once apprenticed to a pawnbroker
mystery underground caverns of Edinburgh – origins unknown
Barnsley – Hudson-Taylor heritage trail attracts Chinese tourists
museum curators who used to live in, make breakfast, and change the beds
US choir touring the origin locations of their favourite hymns
Koreans who papered their houses with pages of the Bible
Delegates agreed that there is a rapidly growing interest in Christian heritage, as quality tourism, with educational elements, delivered in an accessible and enjoyable way. The experience, however, has to be excellent, requiring high standards of training, organisation and motivation.
Kelly Clowes, Headteacher, Harworth All Saints’ Primary Academy
Martin Lown Christian Heritage, Cambridge
Paul Collins & Paula Noble, Cowper and Newton Museum Olney Buckinghamshire
The area in and around Bassetlaw, North Nottinghamshire has a range of engaging stories, attractive to tourists across a number of cultural and religious traditions. Combination themed tours provide the potential for development into attractive packages and opportunities for tourist sites/areas to work together.
The Christian Heritage Conference was organised by Pilgrims & Prophets, and Bassetlaw Christian Heritage.
Delegate organisations that attended the conference included:
Although a number of organisations are named “Christian Heritage”, they are independent; they pursue individual objectives, and there is no link between them.
Bassetlaw Christian Heritage 