Shefford – United Kingdom

 

About Shefford

Located in the Central Bedfordshire area of Bedfordshire, England, Shefford is both a town and a civil parish. An estimated 7,311 people called it home as of the 2021 census.

In the early nineteenth century, archaeologists in Shefford uncovered Roman ruins near the cottage where the poet Robert Bloomfield died in 1823.

Robert Bloomfield, a poet from the working class known as “the shoemaker poet,” passed away in Shefford after being compelled to leave London and settle in a cottage rented from a friend. While living in Shefford, one of his daughters tragically passed away in 1814, and his wife eventually became insane. Later in life, he was forced to resort to producing Aeolian harps, which he sold to his friends and acquaintances, to supplement the meager income he had gotten from failing to succeed as a bookshop. He lost his sight and his mind to despair, and he lived in abject poverty until his death in 1823. As was customary for people who passed away in Shefford, he was laid to rest at Campton.

Located on High Street in Shefford, near to the Roman Catholic Church dedicated to St. Francis of Assisi, the St. Francis’ Boy’s Home (orphanage) operated between the years 1868 and 1974.

As far as we know, religious services are still held at the church. Apartments have been constructed in the former orphanage buildings on the picture’s right side. The orphanage’s structures are the oldest in town, having been constructed in the 1880s, and are therefore the most impressive.

Hotels in Shefford

1. Airman hotel

Address: 16 Hitchin Rd, Meppershall, Shefford SG17 5JF, United Kingdom

2. Riverside cottage

Address: 29 Heronslee, Shefford SG17 5FQ, United Kingdom

3. White hart hotel

Address:  2 Northbridge St, Shefford SG17 5DH, United Kingdom

4. Riverside house

Address:  Riverside House, 4 Clifton Rd, Shefford SG17 5AA, United Kingdom