Mentioned in the Domesday Book, the Manor of Sudbury seems to have declined after the death of John, son of William de Sudbury, during 1333. Two portions of the original meadow lands were enclosed by the seventeenth century; the present Cavendish Court site and the site of the present Sudbury Meadow. This can be clearly seen on the enclosure map of 1799, when the site is under the name of Reynolds. It appears that the site was used for grazing until the late 1980s. Photos exist in St Neots Museum, which suggest that the then owners of Sudbury Meadow, who lived at 6 Crosshall Road, allowed the field to be used for community events during the 1930s. The last animals to use the field were several ponies and a donkey.
The site was left untouched for several years whilst planning permission was sought, by Taywood Homes, for the adjacent plot of land and in 2001 Huntingdonshire District Council ownership.
Huntingdonshire District Council officers were keen to do something a little different with the site and help to fulfil their commitments within Cambridgeshire’s Biodiversity Action Plan at the same time. In early 2001, proposals to retain and enhance the wildlife habitat of the site and create a garden-wildlife awareness area were accepted. St Neots Town Council were asked to select a name and Sudbury Meadow was reborn.
For more details about the site visit Friends of Sudbury Meadow.