Closer inspection of the work in progress will have revealed the names of spaces, streets and monuments that have either been lost in the mist of time or merely had changes of name.

Along with an evolving trail in Parsons Street and Market Place these should encourage a wider interest in the hidden history of the town.
Giles has kindly sent me a list of features that deserve to be remembered by their permanent carving into the stone surface and in today's article I want to reveal why I think his selection is a good one.

Prominent on the list is Banbury Castle, which although it did not survive beyond the 17th century Civil War, its role within the early town was of utmost importance.

The first castle was wooden and dated from Saxo-Norman times.
It was sited on a knoll of well-drained gravels above blue lias clays and close to the course of the River Cherwell.

A second and stone castle appeared in roughly the same area. It was one of three great stone castles built at the behest of Alexander the Magnificent, Bishop of Lincoln, in the 12th century (the others were at Newark and Sleaford).

Sometime during the period from mid-13th to 14th centuries Alexander's castle had been replaced by a concentric double-ditched structure.
This third castle was a formidable feature but this did not save it from near total destruction.

In 1648 the inhabitants of Banbury petitioned for the demolition of the castle and the use of its materials to repair the town.
The medieval burgh not only had a castle but also five bars or gateways, which unlike the castle played no part whatsoever in the defence of Banbury.

The North, South, West, Bridge and Cole Bars were erected mainly because of a need to collect tolls.

The Bridge Bar was especially significant as it was the divide between Oxfordshire and Northamptonshire until late in the 19th century, and was near to some of the key livestock marketing areas such as the Cow Fair (the area in front of the town hall).

Close to this bar was an area known as the Goose Leys. Until relatively recently this was significant grazing land for market animals and precautions had to be taken to ensure that pollution did not happen.
Many street names suggest the division of the Thursday market into sections. True to its name of Horse Fair, two events forged a link between this street and horses.

A horse market is first mentioned in 1525. Later during the 19th century and for a while in the early 20th century, Banbury Twelfth Fair was an eagerly awaited occasion every January. This horse fair extended over four days, the best horses being sold on the first two days.

It was a time when gentlemen farmers competed within display rings and most horses were sold by private treaty. The Warwickshire Hunt also met near the Cross, often on Boxing Day. Other names indicate the products for which Banbury was a trading centre. Cornhill, another market related name, also played a major role in Banbury's history.

This is because the original town hall was here and the building was at the very heart of the system of government. Research has also revealed that the market or Butter Cross – the original Banbury Cross – was most probably in Cornhill. Nearby Butchers Row also had a cross – the Bread Cross.

Frog Lane or Fish Street (now George Street) had a different significance and reason for importance. An earlier name of Scalding Lane suggests a role linked to the plucking of chicken.

In the mid-19th century James Gardner, who pioneered the construction of a most useful machine known as turnip cutter, occupied No. 8.
Bernhard Samuelson bought the right to produce the cutter at his Britannia Works.

By the time of the Reformation much of Parsons Street had become church property and rents on buildings on the north side were used specifically to raise money for the repair of the church.

Those opposite and as far as Church Lane helped to redeem the Bishop of Oxford's land tax. The Lane according to a map of 1441 had an earlier name of Pebble or Pibble Lane.

One of the lesser-known features commemorated on the sculptured plaque is the Windmill Fields. Before the break-up of the Calthorpe Manor Estate in 1833 its 70 or so acres included the large Windmill fields east of the Oxford Road. According to historian Alfred Beesley there was a windmill here as early as 1674. It was on a mound that could have been close to an ancient trackway and at some stage the site of a mill.

Banbury is not the only place in our area where Giles MacDonald is involved in the provision of a permanent symbol to record the past.

Martin Greenwood, author of 'In Flora's Footsteps', is seeking to raise funds for a plaque in Fringford Church to commemorate Flora Thompson. At present there is nothing to show she ever lived in the village.

- My thanks to Giles MacDonald for his help with the list of names. There are many more on it with an interesting story to tell.

- Anyone interested in helping to raise money for the Fringford plaque is invited to a light lunch at Fringford village hall on Saturday, December 5, at 12.30pm.

This will be followed by a guided walk around the village. Tickets at £5 can be obtained from Martin Greenwood on 01869 278317 or Helen Peacocke on 01865 882130.