Stamford, town (1991 pop. 18,127), in the Parts of Kesteven, Lincolnshire, E central England, on the Welland River. It is a market town. Products include diesel engines, electrical equipment, bricks, and tiles. Stamford is the supposed site of a defeat of the Picts and Scots by the Saxons in 449 and was one of the Five Boroughs of the Danes. The town is recognized for its architecture. Notable are part of an ancient Benedictine priory; a gate of Brasenose College (founded by a group from Oxford in 1333, when Stamford was famous as a seat of learning); several almshouses; and many 17th- and 18th-century buildings of Lincolnshire limestone. Nearby is Burghley House (16th cent.), home of the statesman William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley, whose family was prominent in Stamford's history.
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