Hickling is a village near Melton Mowbray

Melton Mowbray

Melton Mowbray is a town in the Melton borough of Leicestershire, England. It is to the northeast of Leicester, and southeast of Nottingham...

 but is in and on the southermost border of Nottinghamshire

Nottinghamshire

Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...

. It is within the boundaries of Rushcliffe

Rushcliffe

Rushcliffe is a local government district with borough status in Nottinghamshire, England. Its council is based in West Bridgford. It was formed on 1 April 1974 by merging the West Bridgford Urban District, the Bingham Rural District and part of Basford Rural District.-Political representation:The...

 Borough Council, on the Grantham Canal

Grantham Canal

The Grantham Canal is a canal that runs for 33 miles from Grantham, falling through 18 locks to West Bridgford where it joins the River Trent. It was built primarily to allow for the transportation of coal to Grantham. It opened in 1797, and its profitability steadily increased until 1841...

 and close to the Vale of Belvoir

Vale of Belvoir

The Vale of Belvoir is an area of natural beauty on the borders of Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire in England. Indeed, the name itself derives from the Norman-French for beautiful view.-Extent and geology:...

. The population numbers around 550 people.

The disused Grantham Canal

Grantham Canal

The Grantham Canal is a canal that runs for 33 miles from Grantham, falling through 18 locks to West Bridgford where it joins the River Trent. It was built primarily to allow for the transportation of coal to Grantham. It opened in 1797, and its profitability steadily increased until 1841...

 passes through the village and there is a large basin adjacent to the main road. This would have facilitated loading and mooring when the canal was in use. The basin now attracts a substantial population of swans and ducks and passing motorist who stop to feed them. Plans to put the canal back to water are progressing http://www.granthamcanal.com/rest/hickling.htm and include the building of a swing bridge on the main road through the village. Like many bridges along the canal the original one has been flattened and therefore presently prevents navigation of the cut. Some nearby bridges, like the one elsewhere on this page, will need little work to put back to use. Further details of the plan for the area are available here. http://www.granthamcanal.com/rest/hickling.htm

Much of the village lies within a Conservation area

Conservation area

A conservation areas is a tract of land that has been awarded protected status in order to ensure that natural features, cultural heritage or biota are safeguarded...

, which also contains 24 listed buildings. St Luke's church dates from the 14th century. Inside the church can be found two ornate grave lids that were made for persons of importance and date from the tenth century.
A number of Roman

Roman Britain

Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...

 coins and medals were found in an urn ploughed up nearby in 1771, and it is suspected that there may have been a Roman base nearby.

Hickling residents are commended for their charity raising skills. The village holds an annual Hickling Scarecrow

Scarecrow

A scarecrow is, essentially, a decoy, though traditionally, a human figure dressed in old clothes and placed in fields by farmers to discourage birds such as crows or sparrows from disturbing and feeding on recently cast seed and growing crops.-History:In Kojiki, the oldest surviving book in Japan...

 Festival over a weekend each September. Money raised at that event in 2009 along with the Hickling Country Fair, Open Gardens totalled over £13,500. £4,500 was handed over in February 2010, at a ceremony at the Plough Inn, to each of the Meningitis Trust, the Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire Air Ambulance, and a further 14 village groups. http://www.meltontimes.co.uk/news/Village-hands-over-13500.6061185.jp
The Plough http://www.plough-hickling.co.uk/welcome.htm is very much a focal point for the village providing good home produced food and a welcome atmosphere. The pub fields other activities including poker nights and, alternate Thursdays, open mic night http://video.google.co.uk/videosearch?q=Plough+Inn+Hickling&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=APh3S5XKIYnu0gSYhvCsCQ&sa=X&oi=video_result_group&ct=title&resnum=4&ved=0CBgQqwQwAw#.

Famous residents

Fred Warner

Fred M. Warner

Fred Maltby Warner was an American politician. He served as the 26th Governor of Michigan from 1905 to 1911.-Birth in England and early life in Michigan:...

was born here but emigrated to the USA and eventually became Governor of the State of Michigan..