Earthworks defining the SE corner of 'The Green'. (1)

The area is mounded, and parish records indicate the area was used for a mass grave following the deaths of 115 people in 1609.

Church History Project says this: “The plague devastated the village of East Markham in the early 17th century. In 1609 the vicar of East Markham recorded 115 deaths in the parish register; these names were then followed by the vicar’s own name in another hand. Pevsner (1979) mentions a disturbed meadow south of the church, which shows the site of the old medieval village. After losing more than a quarter of its population to the plague the old village site was abandoned and the villagers regrouped nearer to Lincoln road, then an important route. Also after the plague Tuxford replaced East Markham as a market town.” (2)

And the parish church history document says this: “Of traditions connected with the village, he gave the most authentic first. In 1609, a plague broke out in Markham which devastated the village, ultimately causing its market to be moved to nearby Tuxford. During the year there were 115 deaths, recorded by the Vicar, William Field, immediately followed by his own name, written, movingly, by an unknown hand. The mound on The Green is thought to be the plague pit.”(2)

<1> OS, 1920, 1:2500, County Series 1920 (Map). SNT1029.

Other Refs: 20/1

<2> Tagg M, 2011, Michael Tagg, Bassetlaw Conservation Manager (Personal comment). SNT2567.