Hinxton
Encyclopedia
Hinxton is a village
in South Cambridgeshire
, England
. It is the home to the Wellcome Trust Genome Campus
, which includes the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute and the European Bioinformatics Institute
. The 2001 population was 315.
The River Cam
runs through the village, as does the Cambridge to Liverpool Street
railway, though the village has no station. Hinxton parish's southern boundaries form the border between Cambridgeshire
and Essex
. The village is five miles (8 km) north-west of Saffron Walden
and nine miles (14 km) south of Cambridge
.
".
The village of Hinxton is listed in the Domesday Book
of 1086 as Hestitona, as Hyngeston in the Ely Registers of 1341 and Hengestone in the Ramsey Chartulary.
The first record of a church on the site dates from 1092 when the local sheriff Picot of Cambridge
granted it to what later became Barnwell Priory
in Cambridge.
In 1930 the vicarage was joined with that of neighbouring Ickleton
, though resentment among locals resulted in the decision being reversed in 1955. The advowson
has been in the possession of Jesus College, Cambridge
since 1558.
and has housed their pioneering genome-sequencing project.
in around 1740, before being sold to Thomas Brown of Ickleton
in 1748, passing into the possession of his great-niece Mary Holden. Holden's first husband John Bromwell Jones pulled down the original house and built the present hall between 1748 and 1756. Subsequent owners extended the property and land.
In 1953 the owner, Col. R. P. W. Adeane of Babraham
sold the hall and estate to Tube Investments Ltd. for use as research laboratories, and new buildings were added on the grounds as laboratories. In 1992 the hall was taken over by the Wellcome Trust.
The mill, used for grinding corn, ceased operation in 1955 and fell into disrepair until being restored in the 1980s and is now open to visitors.
Its community role began when the oldest part of the hall was opened as a reading room for villagers, a place to meet and keep up with the news and share books. Generations of Hinxton residents have cared for the building and over the last five years it has undergone a programme of sympathetic updating – to combine the best of traditional village life with modern amenities.
The village hall is in the High Street, next to the recreation ground. It can be hired for family parties, business and commercial events. Find details at http://www.hinxtonvillagehall.co.uk
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
in South Cambridgeshire
South Cambridgeshire
South Cambridgeshire is a mostly rural local government district of Cambridgeshire, England. It was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of Chesterton Rural District and South Cambridgeshire Rural District. It surrounds the city of Cambridge, which is administered separately from the district by...
, 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...
. It is the home to the Wellcome Trust Genome Campus
Wellcome Trust Genome Campus
The Wellcome Trust Genome Campus is a scientific research campus built in the grounds of Hinxton Hall, located in the village of Hinxton, Cambridgeshire....
, which includes the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute and the European Bioinformatics Institute
European Bioinformatics Institute
The European Bioinformatics Institute is a centre for research and services in bioinformatics, and is part of European Molecular Biology Laboratory...
. The 2001 population was 315.
The River Cam
River Cam
The River Cam is a tributary of the River Great Ouse in the east of England. The two rivers join to the south of Ely at Pope's Corner. The Great Ouse connects the Cam to England's canal system and to the North Sea at King's Lynn...
runs through the village, as does the Cambridge to Liverpool Street
Liverpool Street station
Liverpool Street railway station, also known as London Liverpool Street or simply Liverpool Street, is both a central London railway terminus and a connected London Underground station in the north-eastern corner of the City of London, England...
railway, though the village has no station. Hinxton parish's southern boundaries form the border between 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...
and Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
. The village is five miles (8 km) north-west of Saffron Walden
Saffron Walden
Saffron Walden is a medium-sized market town in the Uttlesford district of Essex, England. It is located north of Bishop's Stortford, south of Cambridge and approx north of London...
and nine miles (14 km) south 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...
.
History
The name Hinxton is a contraction of Hengestestun, "the town of HengestHengest
Hengist and Horsa are figures of Anglo-Saxon, and subsequently British, legend, which records the two as the Germanic brothers who led the Angle, Saxon, and Jutish armies that conquered the first territories of Great Britain in the 5th century AD...
".
The village of Hinxton is listed in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
of 1086 as Hestitona, as Hyngeston in the Ely Registers of 1341 and Hengestone in the Ramsey Chartulary.
Church
The parish church of St Mary and St John is a medieval flint and rubble church in the early-English style. It consists of a chancel, nave, south aisle, south chapel, south porch and a western tower with lead-covered spire that contains a clock and two bells that were first hung in 1903.The first record of a church on the site dates from 1092 when the local sheriff Picot of Cambridge
Picot of Cambridge
Picot of Cambridge was a Norman landowner and Sheriff of Cambridgeshire.Born in Saye, Normandy, he rose from obscurity to become Sheriff of Cambridgeshire aa early as 1071 until at least 1090...
granted it to what later became Barnwell Priory
Barnwell Priory
Barnwell Priory was an Augustinian priory at Barnwell in Cambridgeshire, founded as a house of Canons Regular.The priory was home to the Barnwell chronicler, an anonymous chronicler who wrote about the reign of King John.-References:...
in Cambridge.
In 1930 the vicarage was joined with that of neighbouring Ickleton
Ickleton
Ickleton is a village on the Cambridgeshire–Essex border in England. It grew at the point where the ancient Icknield Way crossed the River Cam, so it is likely that some form of habitation has existed on the site since prehistoric times...
, though resentment among locals resulted in the decision being reversed in 1955. The advowson
Advowson
Advowson is the right in English law of a patron to present or appoint a nominee to a vacant ecclesiastical benefice or church living, a process known as presentation. In effect this means the right to nominate a person to hold a church office in a parish...
has been in the possession of Jesus College, Cambridge
Jesus College, Cambridge
Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The College was founded in 1496 on the site of a Benedictine nunnery by John Alcock, then Bishop of Ely...
since 1558.
Hinxton Hall
Hinxton Hall, set on an estate of 95 acres (384,451.7 m²) on the banks of the River Cam, is a red-brick building built in the eighteenth century. Since 1992 the hall has been occupied by the Wellcome Trust Genome CampusWellcome Trust Genome Campus
The Wellcome Trust Genome Campus is a scientific research campus built in the grounds of Hinxton Hall, located in the village of Hinxton, Cambridgeshire....
and has housed their pioneering genome-sequencing project.
History
The first house on the site of the hall was a modest hunting lodge built by Joseph Richardson of HorseheathHorseheath
Horseheath is a hamlet in Cambridgeshire, England, situated a few miles south-east of Cambridge, between Linton and Haverhill, on the A1307 road....
in around 1740, before being sold to Thomas Brown of Ickleton
Ickleton
Ickleton is a village on the Cambridgeshire–Essex border in England. It grew at the point where the ancient Icknield Way crossed the River Cam, so it is likely that some form of habitation has existed on the site since prehistoric times...
in 1748, passing into the possession of his great-niece Mary Holden. Holden's first husband John Bromwell Jones pulled down the original house and built the present hall between 1748 and 1756. Subsequent owners extended the property and land.
In 1953 the owner, Col. R. P. W. Adeane of Babraham
Babraham
Babraham is a village and civil parish in the South Cambridgeshire district of Cambridgeshire, England, about six miles south-east of Cambridge on the A1307 road....
sold the hall and estate to Tube Investments Ltd. for use as research laboratories, and new buildings were added on the grounds as laboratories. In 1992 the hall was taken over by the Wellcome Trust.
Hinxton Mill
Hinxton Mill straddles the River Cam as it flows northward through the village. Although the present mill was built in the seventeenth century, it is almost certainly the site of the mill mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086.The mill, used for grinding corn, ceased operation in 1955 and fell into disrepair until being restored in the 1980s and is now open to visitors.
Hinxton Village Hall
A perfect example of a quintessential English venue. Dating back to Victorian times the flint and brick building lies at the heart of the village.Its community role began when the oldest part of the hall was opened as a reading room for villagers, a place to meet and keep up with the news and share books. Generations of Hinxton residents have cared for the building and over the last five years it has undergone a programme of sympathetic updating – to combine the best of traditional village life with modern amenities.
The village hall is in the High Street, next to the recreation ground. It can be hired for family parties, business and commercial events. Find details at http://www.hinxtonvillagehall.co.uk