[2] Historically, the village of Hardwick is hundreds of years old with the first recorded mention in 991 AD and an entry in the Domesday Book of 1086.

[3] Hardwick used to consist of just a few houses and farmland around St Mary's Church, on what is now the southern edge of the village.

The village's bakery was sited next to a row of houses just to the east of the pub at the end closest to the church, and the only remnant is the shell of the building which has become a garage.

It has expanded greatly since the 1960s, mainly due to an estate of hundreds of houses built on the orchard land to the north of the original village, with the roads taking the names of the displaced trees (e.g. Ellison, Bramley, Limes, Pippin, Quince, Worcester...).

A beauticians nearby took over the site, after significant refurbishment, of another village shop which had failed and lain empty for some years.

In November 2006 part of Newton House burned down, destroying a takeaway food outlet and a Turkish restaurant, while the rest of the building has been left unoccupied pending reconstruction work.

Further west on St Neots Road a café, a beauty salon, a pet shop, gym, a car repair/maintenance garage, medical clinic and an agricultural machinery merchant can be found.