COUNTY OF CAMBRIDGE

Summary

Situation.

CAMBRIDGESHIRE, including the isle of Ely, is bounded by Lincolnshire and a part of Norfolk on the north; by another part of Norfolk and Suffolk on the east; by Essex and Hertfordshire of the south; and by Huntingdonshire, Bedfordshire, and Northamptonshire on the west; being 35 miles long, upwards of 20 broad, and 130 in circumference, containing 570,000 acres. It lies in the province of Canterbury, and diocese of Ely, (except a small part,) and is in the Norfolk circuit.

The face of the country affords a great variety: the north part, comprehending the isle of Ely, is all meadow and fen ground, which feed vast herds of cattle, and by the success in draining, great quantities of corn, especially oats, are grown; the numerous lakes, rivers, and canals, which divide the fens, abound in fish and wild-fowl, and give the inhabitants an easy communication with several counties, as well as with the sea, which occasions a very brisk trade: and whenever the navigable canal from Coventry to Oxford shall be completed, an additional cut of only 11 miles, between Northampton and Daventry will open an easy intercourse between the most distant counties; and enable them to exchange their very different products; as corn for pit-coal, hardware, pottery, &c. in the cheapest and best manner. On the east are those fine downs, known by the name of Newmarket heath and Gogmagog hills; and on the west towards Royston, are others no less extensive intermixed with corn-fields.