Baldock
Baldock is a historic market town within the local government district of North Hertfordshire in the ceremonial county of Hertfordshire, England where the River Ivel rises. It is positioned 33 miles (53 km) north of London, and has a population of around 9900. Nearby towns include Royston towards the northeast, Letchworth and Hitchin to the southwest and Stevenage to the south. The contemporary layout of the town and numerous buildings in the centre date from the sixteenth century, with the earliest dating back to the fourteenth century. The town thrived where the old Great North Road and the Icknield Way crossed. Despite the construction of the A1(M) motorway in 1963, which bypassed the town, and which was known as the Baldock Bypass for some years, it was nevertheless a major traffic bottleneck until March 2006, when a new bypass removed the A505 road, a part of the old Icknield Way east of Baldock. Since the 16th century, Baldock has been a centre for malting, subsequently becoming a regional brewing centre with at least 3 big brewers in operation at the end of the 19th century, despite a drop in demand for the types of beer produced locally. The 1881 Census notes approximately thirty drinking establishments. During the early twentieth century, a big number of pubs continued to operate, many of which were sustained by the adjacent and considerably larger town of Letchworth, which had no alcohol retailers before 1958, and had only 2 pubs and 1 hotel bar till the mid-1990s. Its bigger population had for a lot of years visited both Baldock and Hitchin for refreshment. For all your property improvements, ensure that you utilise trusted professionals in Baldock to make sure that you get the best quality service.