Littleport facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Littleport |
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 St George's Church |
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 Littleport
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| Area | 2.417 km2 (0.933 sq mi) |
| Population | 9,168 (2021) |
| • Density | 3,793/km2 (9,820/sq mi) |
| OS grid reference | TL568868 |
| • London | 67.4 mi (108.5 km) S |
| District |
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| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | ELY |
| Postcode district | CB6 |
| Dialling code | 01353 |
| Police | Cambridgeshire |
| Fire | Cambridgeshire |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| EU Parliament | East of England |
| UK Parliament |
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Littleport is a town in East Cambridgeshire, England. It is located in the historic Isle of Ely area of Cambridgeshire. The town is about 9.7 kilometers (6 miles) north-east of Ely. It sits near the River Great Ouse, a major river in eastern England.
Littleport has two primary schools, Millfield Primary and Littleport Community. It also has a secondary school called Vista Academy. An important event in the town's history was the Littleport Riots of 1816. These riots helped lead to a new law called the Vagrancy Act 1824.
Contents
History of Littleport
Littleport's name comes from an old English word, Litelport. In 1086, the village was very valuable to the Abbots of Ely. It was worth 17,000 eels each year!
Legends and Early Stories
Local legends say that King Canute founded Littleport. One night, a fisherman gave the king a place to stay after some monks were rude to him. King Canute then punished the monks. He made the fisherman the mayor of a new village, which became Littleport.
The Littleport Riots of 1816
The Littleport Riots happened in 1816. Soldiers returning from the Battle of Waterloo found no work. Also, the price of grain had gone up a lot. This made many people very angry. They went into the streets and broke into shops and buildings. Troops had to be called in to stop the riots.
Some church records from St George's church were destroyed during the riots. However, other records still exist. These include marriage records from 1754, burial records from 1756, and baptism records from 1783. You can find original documents about the riots at Cambridgeshire Archives and Local Studies.
Harley-Davidson Connection
In 2003, a statue of a Harley-Davidson motorcycle was put up in Littleport. This was to celebrate 100 years of the famous motorcycle company. William Harley, whose son William Sylvester Harley co-founded the company, was born in Littleport in 1835. He moved to the United States in 1859.
How Littleport is Governed
Littleport is a civil parish. This means it has its own elected council. These town council meetings are held in a building called the Barn.
The local government for Littleport has different levels. From 1894 to 1974, it was part of the Ely Rural District. Then, the East Cambridgeshire District Council was created. This council is based in Ely. The highest level of local government is the Cambridgeshire County Council.
Littleport is also part of the Ely and East Cambridgeshire area for the UK Parliament.
Economy and Businesses
Littleport has been home to some interesting businesses.
Hope Brothers Factory
Thomas Peacock, who started the men's clothing company Hope Brothers, was born in Littleport in 1829. He opened several shops in London. In 1881, the first three-story Hope Brothers factory opened in Littleport. This factory made shirts and collars. By 1891, it employed 300 to 400 women and children. The factory even had a social club and a library for its workers. For a time in the 1940s and 1950s, Hope Brothers also made the England football team's uniforms. Later, the factory was taken over by the famous brand Burberry.
Jim Burns Guitars
From 1979 to 1983, the company Jim Burns guitars was located in Littleport. They made guitars like the "Steer," which was made popular by musician Billy Bragg.
Little Ouse Hamlet
The parish of Littleport includes a small village called Little Ouse. It is part of the Littleport East area. Today, Little Ouse is mostly homes. The old pub, called the Waterman's Arms, and the Church of St John the Evangelist are now private houses.
Near Little Ouse is the lowest trig point in Britain. A trig point is a marker used for surveying. This one is about 0.9 meters (3 feet) below sea level.
Climate in Littleport
Cambridgeshire is one of the driest counties in Britain. It gets about 553.5 millimeters (24 inches) of rain each year. The area is protected from cool coastal winds. This means summers are warm, and winters are cold and frosty.
The closest official weather station is Cambridge NIAB. Other local weather stations also share their information online.
| Climate data for Cambridge (1971–2000 averages) | |||||||||||||
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| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 7.0 (44.6) |
7.4 (45.3) |
10.2 (50.4) |
12.6 (54.7) |
16.5 (61.7) |
19.4 (66.9) |
22.2 (72.0) |
22.3 (72.1) |
18.9 (66.0) |
14.6 (58.3) |
9.9 (49.8) |
7.8 (46.0) |
14.1 (57.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 1.3 (34.3) |
1.1 (34.0) |
2.9 (37.2) |
4.0 (39.2) |
6.7 (44.1) |
9.8 (49.6) |
12.0 (53.6) |
11.9 (53.4) |
10.1 (50.2) |
7.1 (44.8) |
3.7 (38.7) |
2.3 (36.1) |
6.1 (43.0) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 45.0 (1.77) |
32.7 (1.29) |
41.5 (1.63) |
43.1 (1.70) |
44.5 (1.75) |
53.8 (2.12) |
38.2 (1.50) |
48.8 (1.92) |
51.0 (2.01) |
53.8 (2.12) |
51.1 (2.01) |
50.0 (1.97) |
553.5 (21.79) |
| Source: Met Office | |||||||||||||
Population and Demographics
Littleport covers an area of about 73.7 square kilometers (28.46 square miles). This makes it the largest village in East Cambridgeshire by size. The city of Ely has the most people in East Cambridgeshire, followed by Soham, and then Littleport is third.
Famous People from Littleport
Many interesting people have connections to Littleport:
- Peter Ackroyd (1917–2005) was a scholar who studied the Bible. He passed away in Littleport.
- William Harley was born here. His son, William Sylvester Harley, helped start the Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Company.
- Fred Hockley (1923–1945) was a fighter pilot during World War II.
- Edward Mortimer-Rose (1920–1943) was also a World War II fighter pilot.
- James Nightall (1922–1944) was given the George Cross award after he died. This was for his bravery during the Soham rail disaster in 1944.
- Marty Scurll is a professional wrestler. He won the BOLA 2016 and has been a champion many times in Progress Wrestling.
- Victor Watson (born 1936) is a children's writer and academic. He was born in Littleport.
- Thomas Peacock (1829–1895) was born in Littleport. He created the Hope Brothers clothing chain and built a shirt factory in the town in 1881.
- Roger Law (born 1941) is a British artist. He is known for creating the popular TV puppet show Spitting Image with Peter Fluck.
World War II Events
On December 16, 1944, a British double agent named Eddie Chapman was flown to Britain by the Germans. He was on a mission to check how accurate German V-1 flying bombs and V-2 rockets were when they hit London. He also had to report on how people in London felt about the attacks.
After watching the bombs, Chapman's plane flew towards East Anglia so he could parachute out. The plane had a small trap door for parachuting. A British night-fighter plane spotted the German plane and attacked it. Chapman quickly jumped out, but his parachute got stuck at first. As he floated down, he saw the British plane attack the German one again. The German plane caught fire and exploded when it hit the ground, killing the crew. Chapman landed near Apes Hall in Littleport in the middle of the night. He woke up the farm foreman, George Convine, and told him he was a crashed British airman. He asked Convine to call the police.
Local Folklore and Legends
Littleport has stories about two different spectral black dogs. These stories are similar to the Black Shuck legends from eastern England.
The Monk and the Black Dog
A local storyteller, W. H. Barrett, shared a tale from long ago. A girl was gathering wild mint near a lake. A bad friar tried to harm her, but a huge black dog saved her. Both the dog and the friar died in the fight. The local men threw the friar's body into the lake. But they buried the dog with respect. People say the dog still haunts the area.
The A10 Road Haunting
Another storyteller, Enid Porter, shared stories from the 1800s. These tales are about a black dog haunting the A10 road between Littleport and Brandon Creek. People living nearby would hear howling at night. Travelers would hear trotting feet behind them and feel hot breath on their legs. The legend says the dog was waiting for its owner, who drowned in the nearby River Great Ouse in the early 1800s. This haunting supposedly ended in 1906. That year, a local person drove their car into something solid near where the owner drowned, but nothing was ever found.
Images for kids
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Littleport railway station
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Harley-Davidson monument
See also
In Spanish: Littleport para niños
