Babraham | |
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Babraham Hall, now part of the Babraham Institute |
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Babraham shown within Cambridgeshire | |
Population | 276 (2011 Census) |
OS grid reference | TL5150 |
Civil parish |
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District | |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | CAMBRIDGE |
Postcode district | CB22 |
Dialling code | 01223 |
Police | Cambridgeshire |
Fire | Cambridgeshire |
Ambulance | East of England |
EU Parliament | East of England |
Babraham is a village and civil parish in the South Cambridgeshire district of Cambridgeshire, England, about 6 miles (9.7 km) south-east of Cambridge on the A1307 road.
Babraham is home to the Babraham Institute which undertakes research into cell and molecular biology.
The parish of Babraham covers an area of 2,387 acres (966 ha) and is roughly rectangular in shape. Its straight northern boundary is formed by the ancient Wool Street, separating it from Fulbourn, and its eastern border follows the Icknield Way (now the A11), separating it from Little Abington. The remaining boundaries with Stapleford, Sawston and Pampisford are formed by field boundaries and a small section of the River Granta, on which the village lies.
The course of the River Granta through the parish has been changed on numerous occasions; a watermill was listed as valueless in the 14th century when the river had changed course, and additional water channels have been dug for irrigation as well as to form an ornamental canal alongside Babraham Hall. Severe floods hit Babraham in both 1655 and 1749.
Traces of a Roman villa have been found on its parish boundary with Stapleford. It has also been suggested that the village has moved site, the principal evidence being that the church is 400 metres (440 yd) from the present village. Babraham was comparatively wealthy during medieval times due to its wool trade, with the highest tax returns in its hundred. In the late 16th century the manor was the principal seat of the great Elizabethan merchant and financier Sir Horatio Palavicino. Between 1632 and the 19th century, the manor was owned by the Bennet, and later the Adeane, families, who lived in Babraham Hall. The Hall was built in 1833 by Henry John Adeane.