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Fen Skating
Fen skating is a traditional form of ice skating in the Fenland of England. The Fens of East Anglia, with their easily flooded meadows, form an ideal skating terrain. Bone skates have been found in the area dating back to the medieval period. It is not known when the first skating matches were held, but by the early nineteenth century they had become a feature of cold winters in the Fens. The golden age of fen skating was the second half of the nineteenth century, when thousands of people turned out to watch such legendary skaters as Larman Register, William "Turkey" Smart, (William) "Gutta Percha" See, and brothers George 'Fish' Smart (1858-1909) and James Smart. Members of the Bury Fen Bandy Club published rules of the game in 1882, and introduced it into other countries. The National Skating Association was set up in Cambridge in 1879 and took the top few fen skaters to the Netherlands, where they had a brief moment of international glory with James Smart becoming Britain ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stamford Mercury
The ''Stamford Mercury'' (also the ''Lincoln, Rutland and Stamford Mercury'', the ''Rutland and Stamford Mercury'', and the ''Rutland Mercury'') based in Stamford, Lincolnshire, England, claims to be "Britain's oldest continuously published newspaper title". The ''Mercury'' has been published since 1712 but its masthead formerly claimed it was established in 1695 and still has "Britain's Oldest Newspaper". Three editions (Stamford and The Deepings, Rutland, and Bourne) are published every Friday. The ABC circulation figure in 2011 was 16,675. The ''Mercury'' is now owned by Iliffe Media; sister newspapers include ''The Rutland Times''. In January 2017, Johnston Press sold 13 of its East Midlands and East Anglia titles (including the ''Mercury'') to Iliffe Media for £17m. An edition of the ''Mercury'' from 22 May 1718 is the earliest newspaper in the British Library's newspaper reading room, The Newsroom. Archives The ''Mercury'' possesses the largest archive of any provi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fen Runners
A fen is a type of peat-accumulating wetland fed by mineral-rich ground or surface water. It is one of the main types of wetlands along with marshes, swamps, and bogs. Bogs and fens, both peat-forming ecosystems, are also known as mires. The unique water chemistry of fens is a result of the ground or surface water input. Typically, this input results in higher mineral concentrations and a more basic pH than found in bogs. As peat accumulates in a fen, groundwater input can be reduced or cut off, making the fen ombrotrophic rather than minerotrophic. In this way, fens can become more acidic and transition to bogs over time. Fens can be found around the world, but the vast majority are located at the mid to high latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. They are dominated by sedges and mosses, particularly graminoids that may be rarely found elsewhere, such as the sedge species ''Carex exilis''. Fens are highly biodiverse ecosystems and often serve as habitats for endangered ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prickwillow
Prickwillow is a village in East Cambridgeshire with an estimated population of 440. Originally a small hamlet on the banks of the River Great Ouse, it is now on the banks of the River Lark since re-organisation of the river system. It lies in the south of the Fens, east of the city of Ely in Cambridgeshire, England, and is home to Prickwillow Museum, which tells the story of the changing face of Fenland. Prickwillow Museum is housed in the old pumping station and contains a major collection of working pumping engines. The village is also home to the Ely Group of Internal Drainage Boards. History Evidence for very early settlements near Prickwillow was unearthed in the 1930s, when an archaeological dig took place at Plantation Farm and Peacocks Farm, by the A1101. This provided evidence for Roman and three levels of prehistoric settlements just to the east of the village. The modern parish of Prickwillow was formed in 1878. The name is said to be a reference to the 'prickets ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Newmarket, Suffolk
Newmarket is a market town and civil parish in the West Suffolk district of Suffolk, England. Located (14 miles) west of Bury St Edmunds and (14 miles) northeast of Cambridge. It is considered the birthplace and global centre of thoroughbred horse racing. It is a major local business cluster, with annual investment rivalling that of the Cambridge Science Park, the other major cluster in the region. It is the largest racehorse training centre in Britain, the largest racehorse breeding centre in the country, home to most major British horseracing institutions, and a key global centre for horse health. Two Classic races, and an additional three British Champions Series races are held at Newmarket every year. The town has had close royal connections since the time of James I, who built a palace there, and was also a base for Charles I, Charles II, and most monarchs since. Elizabeth II visited the town often to see her horses in training. Newmarket has over fifty horse training ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Welney
Welney is a village and civil parish in the Fens of England, and the county of Norfolk. The village is about south-west of the town of Downham Market, south of the town of King's Lynn and west of the city of Norwich. The county boundary with Cambridgeshire is adjacent, with the city of Cambridge to the south. Welney is immediately to the west of the Old Bedford River, River Delph and New Bedford River, which are all parallel channels and are here crossed by the A1101 road. Welney is on the Ouse Washes, an area of wildlife conservation. WWT Welney, near the village, is a nature reserve in the care of the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust. Nearby, there are also the RSPB Ouse Washes, a reserve managed by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. The parish covers an area of and had a population of 528 in 217 households at the 2001 census; the population increased to 542 at the 2011 Census. For the purposes of local government, the parish falls within the district of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ely, Cambridgeshire
Ely ( ) is a cathedral city in the East Cambridgeshire district of Cambridgeshire, England, about north-northeast of Cambridge and from London. Ely is built on a Kimmeridge Clay island which, at , is the highest land in the Fens. It was due to this topography that Ely was not waterlogged like the surrounding Fenland, and was an island separated from the mainland. Major rivers including the Witham, Welland, Nene and Great Ouse feed into the Fens and, until draining commenced in the eighteenth century, formed freshwater marshes and meres within which peat was laid down. Once the Fens were drained, this peat created a rich and fertile soil ideal for farming. The River Great Ouse was a significant means of transport until the Fens were drained and Ely ceased to be an island in the seventeenth century. The river is now a popular boating spot, and has a large marina. Although now surrounded by land, the city is still known as "The Isle of Ely". There are two Sites of Sp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
March, Cambridgeshire
March is a Fenland market town and civil parish in the Isle of Ely area of Cambridgeshire, England. It was the county town of the Isle of Ely which was a separate administrative county from 1889 to 1965. The administrative centre of Fenland District Council is located in the town. The town grew by becoming an important railway centre. Like many Fenland towns, March was once an island surrounded by marshes. It occupied the second largest "island" in the Great Level. As the land was drained, the town grew and prospered as a trading and religious centre. It was also a minor port before, in more recent times, a market town and an administrative and railway centre. March is situated on the banks of the navigable old course of the River Nene, today mainly used by pleasure boats. History March was recorded as ''Merche'' in the Domesday Book of 1086, perhaps from the Old English ''mearc'' meaning 'boundary'. Modern March lies on the course of the Fen Causeway, a Roman road, and ther ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thorney, Cambridgeshire
Thorney is a village in the Peterborough unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. Located around eight miles (13 km) east of Peterborough city centre, on the A47. Historically in the Isle of Ely, Thorney was transferred to the short-lived county of Huntingdon and Peterborough in 1965 and became part of the Peterborough district in 1974, on the merger into Cambridgeshire; the city became a unitary authority area in 1998. History Thorney began as a Saxon settlement in about 500 AD. The existence of Thorney Abbey made the settlement an important ecclesiastical centre, and until 2014 was the most northerly point of the Anglican Diocese of Ely. By 2007 the previous Thorney Abbey church, now the Church of St Mary and St Botolph, was part of the Deanery and Diocese of Peterborough. Following the Dissolution of the Monasteries the estate became crown property and it was granted to John Russell, 1st Earl of Bedford in 1550. At this time only a fe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ramsey, Cambridgeshire
Ramsey is a market town and civil parish in the Huntingdonshire district of Cambridgeshire, England. The town is about north of Huntingdon. Ramsey parish includes the settlements of Ramsey Forty Foot, Ramsey Heights, Ramsey Mereside, Ramsey Hollow and Ramsey St Mary's. The town grew up around Ramsey Abbey, an important Benedictine monastery. In the order of precedence for abbots in Parliament, Ramsey was third after Glastonbury and St Albans. The town manor is built on the site of (and using materials from) the ancient Abbey and is the seat of the Lords de Ramsey, major landowners in Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire. The remains of the Abbey are now home to part of the town's secondary school. Abbey College, Ramsey resulted from the amalgamation of the previous two secondary schools, Ailwyn School and Ramsey Abbey School. History Besides a Palaeolithic axe discovered in Victoria Road and seen as a chance glacial find, there is no record of prehistoric finds from the town. Ro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Upwell
__NOTOC__ Upwell is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. Upwell village is on the A1101 road, as is Outwell, its conjoined village at the north. The nearest towns are Wisbech to the north-west and Downham Market to the east. The parish covers an area of and had a population of 2,456 in 1,033 households at the 2001 census, increasing to 2,750 at the 2011 Census. History The villages name means 'higher well (= spring/stream)'. Originally, part of a single place called Well; 'upp' was appended to distinguish from Outwell. Upwell in 1202 had a market-place and a weekly market. Marmont Priory was endowed by Richard I with 300 acres in Upwell and Outwell. The priory of Gilbertines was founded in the reign of King John. Cultivation of flax and hemp is referred to in an order of Sessions of Sewers in 1340. Upwell was connected with Wisbech by a steam tramway in 1884 William Wolsey a constable of Upwell, Outwell & Welney (and Robert Piggot of Wisbech) Pro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sutton-in-the-Isle
Sutton or Sutton-in-the-Isle is village and civil parish in the county of Cambridgeshire in England, near the city of Ely. The "in-the-Isle" suffix refers to the fact that the village is part of the Isle of Ely, once an island in the Fens and also an administrative county until 1965. The village location on the high ground of the Isle of Ely provides commanding views across the surrounding low-lying fens. History The village was mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, identified as ''Sudtone''. There were then 9 sokemen, 8 villeins (each with 7.5 acres), 15 cotters and 7 serfs. In 1109, the charter 51 of Bishop Hervey included ''Suttune'' in the lands recorded as being conferred upon the Cathedral Priory of Ely. According to the Ely Diocesan Register, the Manor of Sutton was established in 1292 and belonged to the Priory. In 1312, Sutton was granted the right to hold a street market each Thursday; this was held on the wider part of the High Street, outside what is now the On ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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