Warboys

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Warboys is a village in Huntingdonshire (now part of Cambridgeshire), England, near Ramsey and north east of Huntingdon.

[edit] History

Warboys is a large parish and village on what was the eastern side of Huntingdonshire bordering on Cambridgeshire. It was returned in the Domesday survey of 1086 amongst the lands of St. Benedict of Ramsey.

The north-east part is Fenland with the higher land to the south being of stiff clay. The land falls from about 114 ft above sea-level in the south to 2 ft in the fenland of the north and north-east. Nearly 3/4 of the area is arable upon which potatoes are largely grown, and also corn and beans, etc. Warboys Wood is the only remaining piece of woodland.

The village lies on high ground in the south-west part of the parish overlooking the fen to the north-east. It has grown up at the foot of a fork formed at the junction of the main road from St. Ives to Ramsey, with a branch road leading eastwards over Warboys Heath on to Fenton. The main road, as it passes through the village, is called Church Street, and the branch road is High Street. The church is at the south end of the village. There are three or four old cottages in the village, including the White Hart Inn on the north side of the High Street - a 17th-century brick house with a thatched roof.

In 1774 an Act of Parliament was passed for draining certain lands in Warboys including 300 acres called High Fen and 60 acres part of New Pasture. In 1795, an Act was passed for dividing, inclosing and draining the open common fields in Warboys. A further Act was passed in 1798 to amend the last Act as regards the lands allotted in lieu of tithes.

A local landmark is a clock tower that was built in 1837 to celebrate the accession of Queen Victoria to the throne. Warboys is also famous for the trial of the so-called "Witches of Warboys". These now form the emblem of the local primary school.

In World War II, the RAF operated a bomber base just southwest of the village. Wellingtons operated there from 1942 until early 1943 when they were replaced by Lancasters. After early 1944, the base was used for training until flying operations ended late in 1945. All the buildings and land were sold by 1964.^[1]

The village was the only site in Huntingdonshire to be used in the Survey of English Dialects.