Houghton is a village and former

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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

, now in the parish of Houghton and Wyton, in

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfor ...

, England, approximately east of

Huntingdon Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district of Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by John, King of England, King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver C ...

on the A1123 road, and south of

RAF Wyton Royal Air Force Wyton or more simply RAF Wyton is a Royal Air Force List of Royal Air Force stations, station near St Ives, Cambridgeshire, St Ives, Cambridgeshire, England. The airfield is decommissioned and the station is now under the comm ...

. It lies on the north bank of the

River Great Ouse The River Great Ouse ( ) is a river in England, the longest of several British rivers called "Ouse". From Syresham in Northamptonshire, the Great Ouse flows through Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk to drain into the ...

, by

Houghton Mill Houghton Mill is a water mill located on the Great Ouse in the village of Houghton, Cambridgeshire, England. It is a National Trust property and a Grade II* listed building. History Mills have been recorded here since 974. The mill was own ...

. It is within

Huntingdonshire Huntingdonshire (; abbreviated Hunts) is a local government district in Cambridgeshire, England, which was historically a county in its own right. It borders Peterborough to the north, Fenland to the north-east, East Cambridgeshire to the e ...

, a

non-metropolitan district Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially "shire districts", are a type of Districts of England, local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties (colloquially ''s ...

of Cambridgeshire and a historic county of England. It was named one of the "Best Places to Live in the East" by the ''Sunday Times'' in 2016.

History

Houghton is mentioned in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

and described as "Hoctune".

Government

Houghton is part of the civil parish of 'Houghton and Wyton', which has a parish council. The parish council is the lowest tier of government in England and is elected by the residents of the parish on the

electoral roll An electoral roll (variously called an electoral register, voters roll, voters list, poll book or other description) is a compilation that lists persons who are entitled to vote for particular elections in a particular jurisdiction. The list is ...

. The parish council has nine councillors and meets approximately every two weeks through the year. In 1931 the parish of Houghton had a population of 321. On 1 April 1935 the parish of Houghton was abolished to form "Houghton and Wyton". Houghton was in the historic and

administrative county An administrative county was a first-level administrative division in England and Wales from 1888 to 1974, and in Ireland from 1899 until 1973 in Northern Ireland, 2002 in the Republic of Ireland. They are now abolished, although most Northern ...

of Huntingdonshire until 1965. From 1965, the village was part of the new administrative county of

Huntingdon and Peterborough Huntingdon and Peterborough was a short-lived administrative county, administrative and Geographical counties of England, geographical county in East Anglia in the United Kingdom. It existed from 1965 to 1974, when it became part of Cambridgesh ...

. Then in 1974, following the

Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...

, Houghton became a part of the county of Cambridgeshire. The second tier of local government is

Huntingdonshire District Council Huntingdonshire District Council is the local authority for the district of Huntingdonshire in Cambridgeshire, England. The council is based in the town of Huntingdon. The district also includes the towns of Godmanchester, Ramsey, St Ives and ...

which is a

of Cambridgeshire and has its headquarters in Huntingdon. Huntingdonshire District Council has 52 councillors representing 29 district wards. Houghton is a part of the district ward of 'The Hemingfords' and is represented on the district council by two councillors. District councillors serve for four-year terms following elections to Huntingdonshire District Council. For Houghton the highest tier of local government is

Cambridgeshire County Council Cambridgeshire County Council is the county council for non-metropolitan county of Cambridgeshire, England. The non-metropolitan county is smaller than the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county, which additionally includes the City o ...

. The county council consists of 69 councillors representing 60 electoral divisions. Houghton is part of the electoral division of 'The Hemingfords and Fen Stanton', represented on the county council by one councillor. At Westminster, Houghton is in the parliamentary constituency of

. Houghton is represented in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

Ben Obese-Jecty Benjamin Obese-Jecty (, born September 1979) is a British Conservative politician who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Huntingdon since 2024. Early life Obese-Jecty's father was originally Ghanaian and came to Britain on the SS ''Apapa' ...

(

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

), who succeeded

Jonathan Djanogly Jonathan Simon Djanogly (born 3 June 1965) is a British politician and solicitor who served as Shadow Solicitor General for England and Wales from 2004 to 2010 and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Courts and Legal Aid from 2010 to 2 ...

(Conservative) in 2024. The previous MP

John Major Sir John Major (born 29 March 1943) is a British retired politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1997. Following his defeat to Ton ...

(Conservative) represented the constituency between 1983 and 2001.

Demography

Population

In the period 1801 to 1901 the population of the separate parishes of Houghton and Wyton was recorded every ten years by the

UK census Coincident full censuses have taken place in the different jurisdictions of the United Kingdom every ten years since 1801, with the exceptions of 1941 (during the Second World War), Ireland in 1921/Northern Ireland in 1931, and Scotland in 2021. ...

. During this time the population was in the range of 467 (the lowest was in 1901) and 818 (the highest was in 1871). From 1901, a census was taken every ten years with the exception of 1941 (due to the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

). All population census figures from report ''Historic Census figures Cambridgeshire to 2011'' by ''Cambridgeshire Insight''. The separate parishes of Houghton and Wyton were combined into a single parish in 1935. Part of this parish's area was separated as a new parish of Wyton on the Hill in 2010. In 2011, the parish covered an area of and so the population density of Houghton and Wyton in 2011 was 716.5 persons per square mile (276.6 per square kilometre).

Notable buildings

is an old watermill owned by the

National Trust The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...

that is used for demonstrating flour milling. It had previously been operated as a

youth hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory sleeping 4–20 people, with shared use of a lounge and usually a kitchen. Rooms can be private or shared - mixe ...

. Houghton's Church of England parish church dates from the Norman era and is dedicated to St Mary. It now serves as the church for the combined parish of Houghton and Wyton. Near the church sits a former United Reformed Church that has been converted into a residential retreat centre.

Other places of interest

At the centre of the village is an area known as the village green, although it is completely paved. The centrepiece of the green is a thatched clock tower. Adjacent to the tower is a monumental bust of former village resident

Potto Brown Potto Brown (1797–1871) was a miller and nonconformist philanthropist in Huntingdonshire, England. He is commemorated by a statue in the village of Houghton where he was born, lived and died. Local schools and churches are a monument to his p ...

(1797–1871), a miller and nonconformist philanthropist. Also on the green are an old water pump and a traditional

red telephone box The red telephone box is a telephone kiosk for a public telephone designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, the architect responsible for Liverpool Cathedral. The telephone box is a familiar sight on the streets of the United Kingdom, its associa ...

It is possible to walk from Houghton to

Hemingford Abbots Hemingford Abbots is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Cambridgeshire, England. Hemingford Abbots lies approximately east of Huntingdon, and is almost continuous with neighbouring Hemingford Grey. Hemingford Abbots is si ...

across the flood meadows, and to St Ives along the Thicket Path. There is a nature reserve (Wildlife Trust) along the Thicket Path known as Houghton Meadows ("Far Close") that shows markings of traditional

ridge and furrow Ridge and furrow is an Archaeology, archaeological pattern of ridges (Medieval Latin: ''sliones'') and troughs created by a system of ploughing used in Europe during the Middle Ages, typical of the open field system, open-field system. It is a ...

farming. In the village centre there is a war memorial hall. On Houghton Hill there is a cemetery. There used to be two veterinary poultry research centres, one on Houghton Hill and the other in "The Elms". There are a number of old houses of interest, particularly in the village green and near the playing field. The playing field is used for

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

, tennis and

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

. On the field there is a

bowling Bowling is a Throwing sports#Target sports, target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a bowling ball, ball toward Bowling pin, pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). Most references to ''bowling'' are ...

club,

pavilion, tennis courts, football pitch and a scout hut. At the village green is the former home of artist Charles Whymper (1853–1941). He was a relative of

Edward Whymper Edward Whymper FRSE (27 April 184016 September 1911) was an English mountaineer, explorer, illustrator, and author best known for the first ascent of the Matterhorn in 1865. Four members of his climbing party were killed during the descent. W ...

who, in 1865, led the

first ascent of the Matterhorn The first ascent of the Matterhorn was a mountaineering expedition of the Matterhorn made by Edward Whymper, Lord Francis Douglas, Charles Hudson (climber), Charles Hudson, Douglas Robert Hadow, Douglas Hadow, Michel Croz, and two Zermatt guides ...

; a model of the

Matterhorn The , ; ; ; or ; ; . is a mountain of the Alps, straddling the Main chain of the Alps, main watershed and border between Italy and Switzerland. It is a large, near-symmetric pyramidal peak in the extended Monte Rosa area of the Pennine Alps, ...

is in the garden and just visible from the green. The disused railway line runs through Houghton near the river.

Feast week

Every summer (normally the first fortnight of July) there is a week of community events, entitled "feast week". This has included a fun run, fayre and other sporting and fancy dress events.

Education

The only school in the village is Houghton Primary School for children aged five to eleven. The school straddles the boundary between Houghton and Wyton. Children from the school normally feed into

St Peter's School, Huntingdon St Peter's School is a Mixed-sex education, co-educational secondary school and sixth form located in Huntingdon in the English county of Cambridgeshire. History St Peter's traces its origins back to a British and Foreign School Society, Britis ...

, although others go to

St Ivo Academy St Ivo Academy is an academy secondary school and part of Astrea Academy Trust, with sixth form in St. Ives, Cambridgeshire, originally St Ivo School before being taken by Astrea. Specialist status In September 2008 St Ivo Academy was designa ...

Hinchingbrooke School Hinchingbrooke School is a large comprehensive secondary school situated on the outskirts of Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire, historically in Huntingdonshire. Originally all of the surrounding land—including what is now Huntingdon Town—compris ...

, or Abbey College, Ramsey.

Notable residents and people associated with Houghton

Christopher Biden Christopher Biden (25 February 1858) was a British officer in the East India Company Mercantile Marine. He came from the village of Houghton, Cambridgeshire, Houghton in Huntingdonshire. Retiring after more than twenty years at sea, he wrote a ...

(c. 1789 – 1858) was an officer in the East India Company Mercantile Marine *

(1797–1871), miller and philanthropist * George Christopher Burder MC (died 17 April 1945 in Germany) formerly of Wyton Rectory and son of Revd. Claud Vernon Burder and Mary Gabrielle Fielding Burder. He has been described by the museum in

Geffen, Netherlands Geffen had been an independent municipality in the Dutch province of North Brabant until 1993, when it became a part of the newly formed municipality Maasdonk. This lasted until 2015, when Maasdonk was dissolved and Geffen became part of Oss. Ar ...

as the 'hero of Geffen' * Charles Whymper (1853–1941), artist * John Leslie Green who was one of the nine VCs of the

First Day of the Somme The first day on the Somme (1 July 1916) was the beginning of the Battle of Albert the name given by the British to the first two weeks of the Battle of the Somme () in the First World War. Nine corps of the French Sixth Army and the Britis ...

during the First World War * John Galbraith Graham, crossword compiler and former minister at St Mary's Church, Houghton *

David McCandless David McCandless (born 1971) is a British data-journalist, writer and information designer. Career McCandless is the founder of the visual blog ''Information Is Beautiful''. Early explorations into the synergy between data visualisation and his ...

, author (attended Houghton primary school)

References

External links

www.hwmf.co.uk

www.houghton.cambs.sch.uk
{{authority control Villages in Cambridgeshire Former civil parishes in Cambridgeshire Huntingdonshire Populated places on the River Great Ouse