History of St Neots
When the railway opened in 1850, St Neots had a wayside station, but the stage coach trade and the river traffic slumped, causing for a time a loss of prosperity in the area, though that was later regained.
[2] Archaeological excavations in the area now occupied by the Love's Farm houses, exposed the remains of a Bronze Age field system dating from around 1,500 BC.
To the west of the river, an Anglo-Saxon leader took control of a village near the water's edge, probably opposite the Coneygeare, and this was called Ea-tun, meaning waterside-village.
[7] Everyday objects have been found such as the clay weights used in weaving, broken pieces of pottery, a quern-stone, a plough share, and an iron axe.
[8] About 972 AD an Anglo-Saxon landowner named Leofric (or Alric) and his wife Leoflaed founded a small monastery in Eynesbury (at that time known as Ernulph's Bury.
[note 1][13] In the late 10th and early 11th centuries, Viking raiders from Denmark started to occupy areas inland from their established coastal territories; they rowed longboats up the River Great Ouse, attacking religious houses to plunder their treasure; as pagans they held no qualms about the practice.
At Eaton, on the west side of the river, the local chieftain was Ulmar, a thegn (or "thane") and he was superior to two sokemen; the soke was a subsidiary area of land and control.
He took a particular interest in the St Neots Priory, seeing it as a means of developing Benedictine influence, and he made it the most important possession of Bec in England.
Foundations and column bases have been discovered, as well as other finds including glazed floor tiles, painted wall plaster, fragments of stained glass, and pieces of carved masonry.
William of Colmworth and a group of monks, not affiliated to any particular order, was given a site at Bushmead by Hugh de Beauchamp, who had his base in Bedford, in about 1195.
[10] The editor of the Victoria History puts it rather differently: "... in 1412, the priory was declared independent of Bec, on the ground that divine service was neglected and revenues diminished by maladministration.
The old stone bridge survived well into the 20th century, but it proved inadequate for the weight of modern motor traffic, even when passage over it was restricted to one-way operation.
As in most parts of the country, loyalties were mixed, but St Neots was firmly in Parliamentary hands and a detachment of Roundhead troops guarded the town.
[34] The first dissenting chapel in the district was built at Hail Weston, and a Congregational church Meeting House was established on the north side of St Neots High Street in 1718.
Methodism started in St Neots as a result of a visit by John Wesley in 1772, and the first Methodist chapel was built at the corner of Huntingdon Street in 1794.
Rowley's purchases of land, much of it to the east of the railway line, including Monks Hardwick Farm, the Mill at Little Paxton made him probably the most powerful man in the town, long before the family became Lords of the manor.
Local people were responsible for the maintenance, but "That a route connecting two great towns which have a large and thriving trade with each other should be maintained at the cost of the rural population scattered between them is obviously unjust.
Eaton Socon was still in Bedfordshire, which complicated the position, and St Neots grammar school pupils still had to make a daily journey to Huntingdon.
Taylor was required to leave the brewery site near the end of the century, and for around two decades cast bells in the Cambridge Street area, before moving, in about the year 1820, to Oxford.
The greater part of the town being a few feet above the ordinary level of the river, inundations are sometimes consequent upon sudden thaws or very heavy rains, to such an extent as to render a navigation of the streets not merely practicable but necessary.[52]St.
His business was successful for many years -- at its height his factory employed 200 workers -- until a major South American purchaser defaulted and Bower went bankrupt.
He expended a great deal on improvements to locks and conservancy, but the low level of toll charges, set by statute in the 17th century, made profitability impossible.
A suit in Chancery was started, arguing that he had an obligation to maintain the river navigation, and also to limit his toll charges to the level originally determined.
The Gun Park (now the site of the Priory Infants School) was made available for the troops, though it was soon realised that the army's heavy equipment needed a more solid and less muddy base.
[71] The Highland Brigade Royal Field Artillery were stationed at St Neots from August 1914 to April 1915, prior to deployment to France.
[72] St Neots did not suffer any concerted bombing attack in World War II, although the numerous RAF stations in the surrounding area led to enemy bombers' attention.
The primitive state of basic services is shown by the fact that as war became inevitable, it was urged that trenches should be dug to deal with the extra night soil.
Careful attention was given to their early welfare, directed largely by the family doctor, Dr E H Harrisson, who made special arrangements to accommodate them.
[79] By the late 20th century, the de-industrialisation which characterised much of Britain affected St Neots with the loss of Courtaulds (formerly Kayser Bondor), Samuel Jones, Gates' Hydraulics and several others; Paine's Brewery was sold and closed.
That development is currently (2021) being extended eastward, and the first stage of the Wintringham Estate, between Cambridge Street and the St Neots by-pass, has been constructed.
