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Eastrea is a village in
Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and North ...
, located on the
A605 The A605 road is a main road in the English counties of Northamptonshire and Cambridgeshire. Route (west to east) The A605 strikes north from junction 13 of the trunk A14 road through the eastern parts of Thrapston, skirts the village of Thorpe ...
between
Whittlesey Whittlesey (also Whittlesea) is a market town and civil parish in the Fenland district of Cambridgeshire, England. Whittlesey is east of Peterborough. The population of the parish was 16,058 at the 2011 Census. History and architecture W ...
and Coates. The site has been inhabited since
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
times. The population is included in the
civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...
of
Whittlesey Whittlesey (also Whittlesea) is a market town and civil parish in the Fenland district of Cambridgeshire, England. Whittlesey is east of Peterborough. The population of the parish was 16,058 at the 2011 Census. History and architecture W ...
.


History

There was once a church in the village, lost in the 18th century, as well as a chapel which still stands today, albeit converted for commercial use. The first official wedding there took place on 27 September 1927. The village also had a railway station (
Eastrea railway station Eastrea railway station was a station serving the village of Eastrea, Cambridgeshire on the Great Eastern Railway's line from Ely to Peterborough. The station was situated at the level crossing on the road leading south from the village towards ...
) from 1845 until 1866, as well as a shop which closed in the 1980s. Eastrea was formerly the home of two public houses, The Windmill and The Nags Head. The Windmill was demolished in the mid 20th century and it was hoped that the site would be used for a new village hall; such plans never came to fruition. In 2010 the owners of The Nag's Head sought planning approval to convert the pub into houses, citing a significant downturn in business as the main reason for doing so. However,
Fenland District Council Fenland may mean: * Fenland, or the Fens, an area of low-lying land in eastern England ** Fenland District, a local authority district in Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England, forming part of the Fens ** Fenland Airfield, an airfield near Spalding, ...
refused permission, stating that 'financial loss is no reason to allow the conversion of a pub', which was described as 'the beating heart of the community' by locals and regulars.


Village Hall

Since the 1940s, residents have been fighting for permission to build a village hall. A number of possible locations have been suggested over the years, and permission was granted in the 1960s for a hall on the former site of The Windmill pub, but no work was completed before the permission expired. In the 1990s an area of land off Thornham Way was offered, but once again no work was done quickly enough, and the land is now public open space. The present site was provided by Fenland District Council in 2004, on the basis that 14 new homes also would be constructed alongside the village hall. Planning permission was given in 2009. Work began in 2010 but was halted when an archeological dig revealed a human skeleton, believed to be around 2000 years old. Surveying work and the test digging was completed in 2011, and construction work began in earnest the following summer. In September 2012 work began on the framework of the building, and it was due to be completed in May 2013. The total budget cost was over £800,000. In July 2013,
Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester, (Richard Alexander Walter George; born 26 August 1944) is a member of the British royal family. He is the second son of Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester and Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, as well ...
opened the new hall, called the Eastrea Centre, in Coates Road.


See also

*
List of places in Cambridgeshire This is a list of cities, towns and villages in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It includes places in the former county of Huntingdonshire, now a district of Cambridgeshire. A *Abbotsley *Abbots Ripton *Abington Pigotts *Alconbury *Alco ...


References


External links

{{Authority control Villages in Cambridgeshire Whittlesey