Stamford local historian delves into the history of 49 Broad Street as Barclays Bank prepares to close its branch

As Barclays Bank prepares to close the doors to its Stamford branch, an author and local historian has researched the history of the building.

Barclays is to leave its 49 Broad Street base on Friday following a drop in people visiting the bank in recent years.

The closure prompted John Daffurn, a committee member of Stamford and District Local History Society, to look into the origins of the building and its uses over the last 250 years.

Using the Mercury for reference, John, who has previously published books on the history of Stamford homes, researched its links from 1770, when it was built, until the present day.

To see the full article on 49 Broad Street and a brief history of the Stamford Institution, click here.

Perhaps most notably, the building was used from 1838 as the original home of the Stamford Institution before its move to the Bryan Browning building, on St Peter's Hill, four years later.

The group was formed to provide a library, museum, and reading and lecture rooms to promote literature, science and the arts to a wide audience, and won the patronage of the Marquess of Exeter.

The building itself was originally built by John Truman and used as a school for many years until 1829.

By the following year it housed a new Tory-leaning newspaper, called the Bee, complete with printing presses.

After the Institution had come and gone, 49 Broad Street reverted to its former use as a school, firstly as the Classical and Commercial School, and later the Broad Street Academy.

Eventually it became part of the Stamford, Spalding and Boston Banking Company, and latterly Barclays Bank.