Baldock
Baldock is a historic market town in 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 features a population of approximately 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 oldest 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 named the Baldock Bypass for some years, it was nonetheless a significant 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 no less than three big brewers still manufacturing in the area at the close of the 19th century, despite a decline in demand for the types of beer developed locally. The 1881 Census records roughly thirty drinking establishments. Throughout the early 20th century, a big number of pubs remained open, many of which were sustained by the nearby and considerably larger town of Letchworth, which had no alcohol retailers before 1958, and had only 2 pubs and 1 hotel bar until the mid-1990s. Its larger population had for a lot of years visited both Baldock and Hitchin for refreshment. For all your home improvements, be certain that you use vetted experts in Baldock to make sure you get the best quality service.