Manea, Cambridgeshire
| Manea | |
|---|---|
  Manea Location withinCambridgeshire | |
| Population | 2,088 (2011) |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | MARCH |
| Postcode district | PE15 |
Manea/ˈmeɪniː/is a village andcivil parishin the District ofFenland,Isle of Ely,Cambridgeshire,England.
The population (includingWelches Dam) of thecivil parishat the 2011 census was 2,088.[1]
Landmarks areManea railway stationandRSPBWelches Dam nature reserve on theOuse Washes.[2]
The village'sbrass band,the Manea Silver Band, was formed in 1882; it meets at Manea Royal British Legion.[3]Manea men's football team compete in local leagues and cup competitions.
History
[edit]Stonea Camp,an Iron Age hill fort is located approximately 1 mile west of the village.
Manea was once a hamlet in the parish ofCoveney.In the seventeenth century, as part of a programme todrain the Fens,Charles Iplanned to build a new town and summer palace, to be called Charlemont.[4]The scheme was opposed by local residents, includingOliver Cromwell,the MP of nearbyCambridge,who called the scheme "contrary to the law of God and nature".[5]
The village'sChurch of England parish churchis dedicated to St Nicholas and was built in 1875 to replace a building dating from 1791.[6]It is a Grade II listed building.[7]
Manea Colony
[edit]The Manea Colony was set up in 1838 at Manea Fen as an experimentalUtopian communitybut failed after a couple of years. It was based on the ideas ofRobert Owen,autopian socialistand founded by local farmer William Hodson. One of the earliest members of the colony wasSamuel Rowbotham,a proponent offlat Earth theory.[8]
The buildings were built with bricks from the colony's brickworks and slate for roofing.Welsh slatefromPorthmadogwas already arriving at thePort of WisbechandKing's Lynnby 1830.[9] The colony produced a newspaperthe Working Beeon their own press.[10]
On 16 February 1841 Hodson published a notice stating that "The Late Friendly Society, called 'Manea Fen Colony' has been legally dissolved" in theCambridge Chronicleof 20 February 1841. A model of the colony and copies ofthe Working Beeare on display atOctavia Hill's Birthplace House,Wisbech.[11]
TheLeicester Mercuryon 24 April 1841 published details of a trial at Isle of ElyQuarter Sessionsof 7 April. Hodson was fined £10 and Thomas Golding £1 for having on 13 February assaulted Maria Ward, a candidate for admission to the colony.[12]
Hodson emigrated and died on 18 April 1880 atJanesville, Wisconsin,US.[13]
In June 1904 a smallholding in the colony, comprising 32a.0r.15p.with 5a. 3r. 24p. of fishing pits, occupied by Thomas Rolfe, was knocked down to S. H. Farrington of March for £1240. The Colony Farm 114a. 3r. 35p. with house, cottages, barn, and other farm-buildings, occupied by Samuel Dunhour, was withdrawn at £4020. F. J. Wise was solicitor to the vendors (the trustees of the late Mrs M. A. Wise).[14]
During September and October 2016 the Cambridge Archaeological Unit (CAU) followed up geophysics surveys by Fenland Archaeological Society (FenArch) and conducted fieldwork as part of aHLF-fundedproject.[15]
References
[edit]- ^"Civil Parish population 2011".Neighbourhood Statistics.Office for National Statistics.Retrieved20 July2016.
- ^RSPB reserves guide: Ouse Washes
- ^Manea Silver Band website
- ^N. Walker & T. Craddock,The History of Wisbech and the Fens.R. Walker, 1849, page 139.
- ^"Education & History".Middle Level Commissioners.Middle Level Commissioners.Retrieved26 December2021.
- ^Genuki information about Manea
- ^Historic England."Parish Church of St Nicholas (Grade II) (1126582)".National Heritage List for England.
- ^Weill, K. (2022). "Chapter 1".Off the Edge: Flat Earthers, Conspiracy Culture, and Why People Will Believe Anything.Algonquin Books.ISBN978-1-64375-219-8.
- ^"Lynn".Cambridge Chronicle and Journal.29 October 1830. p. 3.
- ^"Cambridge General Advertiser".Retrieved29 October2019– viaBritish Newspaper Archive.
- ^"Octavia Hill".octaviahill.org.Retrieved18 April2021.
- ^"Leicester Mercury".britishnewspaper.co.uk.Retrieved29 October2019.
- ^"Bury and Norwich Post".Retrieved29 October2019– viaBritish Newspaper Archive.
- ^"Stamford Mercury".Retrieved29 October2019– viaBritish Newspaper Archive.
- ^"Manea colony".arch.cam.ac.uk.Retrieved11 January2019.
External links
[edit]
Media related toManeaat Wikimedia Commons- Manea Parish Council
