To reach Frisby there are three turnings off the main A607 Leicester to Grantham Road.  Take any of the turnings and go down the hill until you reach The Bell Inn. Opposite you will find the Village Cross. This is the place at which to start your walk.

This was originally a Preaching Cross, used by the Cistercians or Black Friars from Launde Abbey, and then became a Market Cross. It dates back to the 13th Century and the carvings have unfortunately weathered badly. The Cross was sited in the middle of the street but was recently moved to avoid damage by traffic. The original site is marked in the road, underneath which has been placed a time capsule with various artefacts for the interest of future generations. This area was known as cheap end because of the market which was held there in former times. 

This is now the only pub in the village and dates back to 1759. The extension at the back which was once used as a skittle alley, has been updated into an attractive non-smoking restaurant area.

On the road out of the village towards Leicester, on the right, you will find what used to be the Village Institute formed in 1919, now converted to a very pleasant dwelling. Whist drives, skittles etc. were just a few of the activities that took place here, before the house was modernised.

 4) Zion House
At the time of writing, this house still has a thatched roof (albeit held down by several tyres). The date 1715 can be seen on the brickwork on the gable end of what used to be formerly  "an academy for young gentlemen" established by a Mr Gamble from London. The tiny cottage attached to the main house is reputed to have been the residence of George Davenport, a notorious highwayman, who was eventually hanged at Red Hill, Birstall in 1797. 

Diagonally across the road, is the only pump left (there are some in cottage gardens) and before the mains water came to the village in 1958, there were some 43 private pumps in the village. 

 6) Old Cottages

The cottages on Main Street next to and opposite the pub, apart from having their thatch replaced by slates, remain virtually unchanged.

Opposite Hollow Lane, is sited a row of cottages, known as Skinner's Yard, built sideways to the Main Road. The name dates back from the time  when the top cottages were a butcher's shop and slaughter house owned by Mr Skinner. The shop closed in 1973. 

 8) Along Main Street
The farm on the corner of Hollow Lane, known as Moss Deeping, is one of the oldest buildings, the section end onto the road being the oldest part has a  particularly fine ashlar stone work. Next door, Tudor Cottage, has doors set well below the level of the present road  showing how much the level has risen since it was built. The shop, next to the Old Bakehouse, is one of two remaining in the village. At the turn of the century there were six or more establishments. 

 9) Hall Orchard Lane

Opposite the shop this is the site of the recent development built on the site of the old Hall Orchard although the site of the Old Hall remains a mystery.

11) The Old Post Office
This was once the site of the old smithy, builder's yard , joinery shop and paintshop and its buildings extended down the road to the corner of Hall Orchard Lane. Until recently the village Post Office, it has now been converted to a private dwelling.

The lovely Georgian building opposite the Old Post Office used to be the Black Horse coaching inn until it closed own in 1974. Notice the false windows bricked in to avoid the Window Tax imposed in 1777. Before the turnpike road was built in 1810, all traffic between Melton Mowbray and Leicester used to pass through the village.

13) Down Mill Lane

On the corner of Mill Lane, you may note the outhouses to Yew Tree House which were recently converted to two dwellings. The large window on the road used to be the main entrance to the barn. Walking round into Mill Lane, the old cottage on the right, Sunnyside, was once a market garden and the houses on its left and behind stand in the original orchard. Both Daisy Cottage and Feuside Cottage further down on the left, date back to the 18th Century. At the very end of Mill Lane you will find Mill House which is part of an old corn mill (the mill race can still be seen under the house). Retrace your steps and follow the path opposite Magpie Cottage which will lead you to the 13th Century Church.

Parts of the church date to between 1200 and 1500 A.D. The interior is well worth a visit. The screens in the "Children's Corner" were made in 1930 by Mr Cyril Smith who lived in the village. The chancel screen was donated by A T Foister who used to live at The Limes, down by the cross, in memory of his child who was drowned at Syston. In 1981 the organ was moved into the South Isle to make room for a small Lady Chapel up on the left, the furnishings of which were mostly made or donated by village inhabitants. On leaving the church, the footpath passes the Old School building now used by the Frisby Playgroup. The School was built in 1854, early for a village school. (Notice the plaque "Feed my lambs" on the side wall.) Opposite is Saddler's Cottage, another interesting building.    

15) Church Lane
With its thatched roof, Glebe Cottage is one of the oldest properties and an original farm. Next door, you will find the Old Vicarage, the core of which is believed to be mediaeval. It was much extended in 1759 by Rev. William Brecknock Wragg whose initial can be seen on the stonework above the courtyard. It was he who as vicar from 1756 to 1796 married couples without the obligatory banns and earned Frisby the name of "Gretna Green of the Midlands". Across the road is the old Manor Farm now called Carrfields, another of the original village farms, rebuilt in 1790. The bricklayers involved had to dig his own clay, make his own bricks and was paid 14s per 1000.

Following the foothpath to the left you will find what is called Butt Hole, because of the archery practice that used to take place here in mediaeval times (from the archery butts). The arches in the wall were constructed to support the wall in low lying land. There used to be three thatched cottages on the site until the 50's.

17) Water Lane
At the end of Wellfield Lane, you can see the railway crossing. Frisby Station used to be sited until 1961next to where the signal box and the ticket office was opposite. Turning left into Water Lane, Gables Farm can be seen opposite the Village Hall and behind it an old Malt House which has recently been restored into a private dwelling. It is said to be 400 and has some very interesting timbers. These two dwellings are off the road but well worth a peep. 

We hope that you have enjoyed this stroll around the village and suggest that, after you have completed it, you should return to the Bell Inn for a well-deserved drink!!

Mill Lane

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