The town of Towcester (pop 10,000) lies 100km (60 miles) north of London, England in rural Northamptonshire. It is the oldest town in the county with evidence of stone age and iron age settlements and was once an important Roman town, called Lactodurum lying at the junction of Watling Street, the Roman road from Dover to Chester and the Roman road to Alchester, one of the earliest Roman settlements.

It was a border town between the Saxon and the Vikings (c.900AD), and again during the Civil War between the Royalists and Parliamentarians (c.1643AD). The Normans (c.1185) built a motte and bailey castle, nowadays called "Bury Mount", which has undergone re-shaping. Towcester was a busy coaching town, until the railways came. Then it was a busy traffic thronged town on the A5 until the M1 motorway was built.

On this site you can

• Find out about the History of Towcester
• See Photographs and Line Drawings
• Research your Family History from the lists we provide
• Find out about Towcester People and Places, and of course
• Find information about the Towcester and District Local History Society, including our varied programme of meetings, social events, research projects, summer outings and the books and booklets we have published.

Our meetings are held on the second Wednesday of the month (except August) at 7:30pm at the Sawpits Centre, Towcester. All are welcome, and there is a small fee for visitors. Members can also access the meetings by Zoom. Click here to read the programme.

Member of the Milton Keynes Heritage Association (MKHA)