Haverhill is an industrial market town in the county of Suffolk, England, situated next to the borders of Essex and Cambridgeshire. It lies approximately 18 miles southeast of Cambridge and 60 miles north of London. It is the second town of the borough of St Edmundsbury, and has a population of around 22,000.

Haverhill dates back to at least Saxon times, and the town's market is recorded in the Doomsday book (1086). Whilst most of its historical buildings were lost to the great fire on June 14th 1667, it does however retain one notable Tudor house (reportedly given to Anne of Cleves as part of her divorce from Henry VIII) and many interesting Victorian buildings.

Nowadays, Haverhill is predominantly a modern and young town, having experienced a large influx of people through being designated an expansion town following World War II. The relatively small town centre is surrounded by many large housing developments, completed at various periods between the 1950s and the present. Recently, it has seen the growth of small, but noticeable Portuguese and Polish communities.

1 Geography
2 Economy
- 2.1 The missing railway
3 Other information
- 3.1 Owen the Jubilee Walk car park cat
4 External links

[edit] Geography

The town center lies at the base of a gentle dip in the chalk hills of the Newmarket Ridge, and running through the town is the Stour Brook river which goes on to join the River Stour just outside of the town. Rapid expansion of the town over the last two decades, means that the western edge of Haverhill now includes the hamlet of Hanchet End. The surrounding countryside largely consists of arable land.

[edit] Economy

The town's economy is dominated by industry, and has a huge industrial area on its southern side of the town is home to a large number of manufacturing companies such as Wisdom toothbrushes, Gurteen clothing, Winmau Dartboards, Grampian Foods (in Little Wratting near Haverhill) and Workspace office furniture (formerly Project). Other companies deal in chemicals (International Flavours & Fragrances), waste processing, transport and construction. More recently, some cutting edge biotechnology firms (eg Genzyme) have also moved in.

In November 2004, Haverhill achieved a world first, becoming the only known town to feature a laser-lit sculpture on a roundabout. The steel sculpture, called Spirit of Enterprise, dominates the main gateway roundabout on the road from Cambridge, and has caused controversy among local people. It is largely unpopular with many of the local residents, and due to its unusual shape it has been nicknamed the "Haverhill toilet roll."

Also the large amount of youths that call themselves 'chavs' a.k.a commoners. has gained the town the nicknames 'Chaverhill', 'Chaverhole' and 'Chaverhell.'

[edit] The missing railway

Haverhill has no railway station. It was on the Cambridge to Sudbury line, which was closed in 1967. Much of its route and infrastructure is still visible in Haverhill and beyond. In recent years, a local campaign has been started to try to bring the railway back to the town.

[edit] Other information

[edit] Owen the Jubilee Walk car park cat

Haverhill has a famous cat called Owen this cat lived in the Jubilee Walk car park close to the town centre and wrote himself into Haverhill legend. St Edmundsbury Council are considering including a statue of Owen when they revamp the car park.

Nathaniel Ward, the author of the first constitution in North America, was born in Haverhill in 1578. The town is namesake to Haverhill, Massachusetts, a city in the eastern United States.

Timothy Pamplin (b.1967), NBC TV Station WDIV "Nightcam" Reporter was born and raised in Haverhill, he left the UK for the US in 1994.

Haverhill is twinned with Pont St. Esprit (France) and Ehringshausen (Germany).