Wicken is a small village on the edge of The Fens near Soham in East Cambridgeshire, ten miles north east of Cambridge and five miles south of Ely. It is the site of Wicken Fen National Nature Reserve. Geography Wicken parish consists principally of fenland covering in eastern Cambridgeshire. Its western border largely follows the course of the River Cam, and its southern border separating it from Burwell follows the winding Wicken Lode, which flows into Reach Lode just before the latter meets the Cam. A fenland waterway forms its eastern border with Soham parish. Since at least the 10th century the parish has also contained the hamlet of Upware in its isolated south-west corner on the Cam. History East Cambridgeshire is known for its great quantity of archaeological findings from the Stone Age, the Bronze Age and the Iron Age. Of Wicken some Bronze Age activity is known as there are a few subsided barrows. Stone Age flint tools, Bronze Age weapons and Roman coinage have also been found in the parish as well as a few spears and other weapons from the Anglo-Saxon era. Wicken's relative isolation and poverty has meant that several of the late medieval and early modern timber-framed houses survive. The medieval limestone cross which formerly stood on Cross Green was unburied and reinstated there in 1973. Wicken was listed as Wicha in the Domesday Book and Wiken in around 1200. The name comes from an Old-English dative plural wícum meaning "the dwellings" or "the trading settlement". Wicken also has the last twelve-sided smock mill still working in England, having been restored to full working order by a team of volunteers. The mill produces various grades and types of flour, milled using windpower driving two sets of burr crystal mill stones. The mill is open during the first weekend of every month and whenever the sails are turning. The mill is a Grade II* listed building. The village was struck by a tornado on 23 November 1981, as part of the record-breaking nationwide tornado outbreak on that day. War memorial Near the village green there is a memorial to the men of the area who died in the two World Wars. The name of Bailey is sadly prominent, with three in the First World War and one in the Second World War. There is also a mention of the 50th anniversary of the Women's Institute