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- the text in this section is based on an article in Wikipedia
Dry Drayton is a village and civil parish about 5 miles (8 km) northwest of Cambridge in Cambridgeshire, England, listed as "Draitone" in the Domesday Book in 1086. It covers an area of 829 hectares (2,049 acres). According to the UK census of 2011 it had a population of 582.
The ancient parish of Dry Drayton was formed between the Roman Via Devana (now the A14 road) to the north, and the Cambridge to St. Neots road to the south, covering an area of 2,421 acres. In 1966 around 350 acres were removed from the northwest of the parish to create the new civil parish of Bar Hill. Now completely cleared of ancient woodland, the village has been used for arable farming for centuries.
The village became known as Dry Drayton by the start of the 13th century to distinguish it from Fen Drayton (5 miles to the northwest). In comparison to much of the land around about Dry Drayton was susceptible to drought. The name "Drayton" means "farmstead where drays or sledges are used".
The parish church in the village has been dedicated to St Peter and St Paul since the 15th century.
Nearby villages are Oakington to the northeast, Hardwick to the south, Madingley to the southeast, and Bar Hill to the north.
Research Tips
- Original historical documents relating to Cambridgeshire are now held by Cambridgeshire Archives and Local Studies at Shire Hall, Ely, Cambridgeshire, CB7 4GS
- The Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire Family History Society has transcribed the parish registers for many if not all the ancient parishes of Cambridgeshire and these can be purchased from the Society as separate pdfs.
- A History of the County of Cambridge. Seven volumes from British History Online (Victoria County Histories). This is by far the most complete history of the parishes of the county to be found online. From the numbering it would appear that some parts of the county are yet to be published online, but the first two volumes for any county are of little interest to the genealogist. The chapters are ordered by the divisions of the county called hundreds, but each parish is listed in the volume's content page.
- A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 3, the City (Cambridge) and University of Cambridge (published 1959)
- A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 4, City of Ely; North Ely and South Ely, Witchford and Wisbech Hundreds (the cathedral city and liberty of Ely and the rural areas to the west and northwest, including the port of Wisbech) (published 2002)
- A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 5, the Hundreds of Longstowe and Wetherley, west of Cambridge (published 1973)
- A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 6, the three Hundreds of Chilford, Radfield and Whittlesford (in the south of the county, on the border with Essex) (published 1978)
- A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 8, Armingford and Thriplow Hundreds (south and west of Cambridge) (published 1982)
- A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 9, Chesterton, Northstowe, and Papworth Hundreds (the suburban and rural areas to the north and northwest of Cambridge) (published 1989)
- A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 10, Cheveley, Flendish, Staine and Staploe Hundreds (northeastern Cambridgeshire) (published 2002)
- GENUKI has a page on Cambridgeshire and pages for each of the ecclesiastical or ancient parishes in the county. These give references to other organizations who hold genealogical information for the local area. Each parish page includes a map of the parish provided by Open Street Maps.
- The FamilyTree Wiki has a series of pages similar to those provided by GENUKI which may have been prepared at a later date.
- A Vision of Britain through Time, section "Units and Statistics" for each parish and borough leads to analyses of population and organization of the county from about 1800 through 1974.
- Map of Cambridgeshire divisions in 1888 produced by UK Ordnance Survey and provided online by A Vision of Britain through Time
- Map of Cambridge divisions in 1944 produced by UK Ordnance Survey and provided online by A Vision of Britain through Time
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