Harlton
| Harlton | |
|---|---|
 Harlton, Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary |
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 Harlton
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| Harlton shown within Cambridgeshire | |
| Population | 303 308 (2011 Census) |
| OS grid reference | TL387523 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | CAMBRIDGE |
| Postcode district | CB23 |
| Dialling code | 01223 |
| EU Parliament | East of England |
Harlton is a village and civil parish in the East of England region and the county Cambridgeshire in the United Kingdom. The village is 5 miles (8.0 km) south-west of Cambridge.
The parish of Harlton covers an area of 1,261 acres (510 ha). Its southern border is marked by the ancient track Mare Way, which runs along a raised ridge dividing it from Barrington (plus a short border with Orwell). The Bourn Brook forms its northern boundary with Comberton, and its western border with Little Eversden mostly follows the Roman Road (now the A603). Field boundaries and old water channels divide it from Haslingfield to the east. There is a very short border with Barton at its north-eastern tip.
The village was an important source of mining for many centuries. The pits to the south east of the village were used to mine the clunch that was used to build Cambridge Castle in 1295. The quarry was last used for building material in 1906 and it is now a heavily-wooded recreation area. The clay quarry to the south-west of the village was known as the Lady Quarry from the 15th century but is now filled in. Gravel was mined alongside the Bourn Brook from at least the 15th century, and coprolite digging provided employment for the second half of the 19th century.
The village had one of the smallest populations in the Wetherley hundred in medieval times, with 20 residents listed in 1086, and 74 in 1676. The census of 1801 listed 156 residents and the coprolite employment caused an increase to a peak of 335 in 1871. It fell to 201 by 1931 and has risen slowly since.
The Cambridge to Bedford railway line reached the parish in the 1860s with Lord's Bridge railway station opening in 1862, closing in 1968 as part of the Beeching Axe. In 1938 the Air Ministry took land south-east of the Roman Road for an ammunition dump with new sidings added to the railway line. It closed in 1955 and in 1957 the Cavendish Laboratory of Cambridge University built the Mullard Radio Astronomy Observatory there. The land was bought from the Ministry of Defence in 1971 and the section of the railway line there was used to carry a number of mobile radio telescope dishes.
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