Chittering, Cambridgeshire
Encyclopedia
Chittering is a hamlet
about 8 miles (13 km) north of Cambridge
in Cambridgeshire
, England
. For administrative purposes it is part of the parish
of Waterbeach
.
The village lies on the Ely Road (A10) between Waterbeach and Stretham
. It has one pub, The Traveller's Rest.
, the marshes in the Chittering area were first settled in Roman times. Investigations around Causeway End Farm in Chittering Fen show evidence of dwellings and inclosed fields that were occupied from the early 2nd to the early 4th century. Denny Abbey
, just to the south of the hamlet, was built in around 1150.
The fenland around Chittering has been known as North Fen since at least the 14th century. Over the following centuries it was gradually divided into smaller areas, and Chittering Fen – so named by the early 15th century – covered an area of around 700 acres (283.3 ha) by the 19th century and was principally used for growing hay.
A school was built in the village to accommodate 54 children in 1877, but numbers had declined to only 19 by the start of the Second World War. The school closed in 1969.
The former micro-brewery, the City of Cambridge Brewery (originally located in Cheddars Lane, Cambridge), used a reedbed system to deal with its waste water, but brewing ceased on the site in 2007 and the remaining assets were sold off in 2011. . There was a second pub in the area, the Plough and Horses, which was open from the 19th century until around 1900.
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
about 8 miles (13 km) north of Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
in Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. For administrative purposes it is part of the parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
of Waterbeach
Waterbeach
Waterbeach is a large fen-edge village located 6 miles north of Cambridge in Cambridgeshire in England, and belongs to the administrative district of South Cambridgeshire. The parish covers an area of 23.26 km².- Village :...
.
The village lies on the Ely Road (A10) between Waterbeach and Stretham
Stretham
Stretham is a small village and civil parish south-south-west of Ely in Cambridgeshire, England, about by road from London. Its main attraction is Stretham Old Engine, a steam-powered pump used to drain the fens. The pump is still in use today although converted to electric power. It has open...
. It has one pub, The Traveller's Rest.
History
Situated towards the southern end of The FensThe Fens
The Fens, also known as the , are a naturally marshy region in eastern England. Most of the fens were drained several centuries ago, resulting in a flat, damp, low-lying agricultural region....
, the marshes in the Chittering area were first settled in Roman times. Investigations around Causeway End Farm in Chittering Fen show evidence of dwellings and inclosed fields that were occupied from the early 2nd to the early 4th century. Denny Abbey
Denny Abbey
Denny Abbey is a former abbey near Waterbeach, six miles north of Cambridge in Cambridgeshire, England which was inhabited by a succession of three different religious orders during its history serving as a monastery....
, just to the south of the hamlet, was built in around 1150.
The fenland around Chittering has been known as North Fen since at least the 14th century. Over the following centuries it was gradually divided into smaller areas, and Chittering Fen – so named by the early 15th century – covered an area of around 700 acres (283.3 ha) by the 19th century and was principally used for growing hay.
A school was built in the village to accommodate 54 children in 1877, but numbers had declined to only 19 by the start of the Second World War. The school closed in 1969.
The former micro-brewery, the City of Cambridge Brewery (originally located in Cheddars Lane, Cambridge), used a reedbed system to deal with its waste water, but brewing ceased on the site in 2007 and the remaining assets were sold off in 2011. . There was a second pub in the area, the Plough and Horses, which was open from the 19th century until around 1900.