north of the parish was extremely important throughout the Middle Ages, establishing Cottenham as a trade route in between Cambridge and the surrounding Fens, resulting it becoming one of the largest villages in Cambridgeshire from the 11th century onwards. The primary road out of the village (now the B1049) travelled southwards to Histon and onwards to Cambridge. The main route into the Fens travelled north towards Wilburton, and was bisected by the River Great Ouse to the north of Cottenham. Access to Wilburton and Ely was via the Twenty Pence Ferry which crossed the River Great Ouse in between Setchel Fen and Chear Fen, now regions of farmland at the northernmost end of the parish. The ferry crossing was maintained until modern times when a floating toll bridge was opened in 1901, and then finally a County Council-built bridge across the Ouse was constructed in 1929. The majority of houses became clustered on either side of the High Street, just over a mile in length and the main road into the city of Cambridge, resulting in Cottenham becoming a long village surrounded by parish pastures, with the village church built at the north of the High Street and the village green to the extreme south of the village. The long High Street and subsequent elongated geography of the village has led to two distinctive communities, the "Church End" and "Green End". Great Fire of Cottenham Cottenham houses have a mix of architectural styles because few houses have survived the numerous fires which have destroyed most of the older buildings. On 29 April 1676 a fire destroyed over half of the buildings in the village, over a hundred houses. Only two dwellings from before 1676 survive today: 11 High Street and 278 High Street. The fire that occurred on 4 April 1850 is known as the Great Fire, and started on the High Street. Forty to fifty cottages burnt down, as well as the Black Horse and White Horse inns and the Wesleyan Chapel, which was housed in a barn on what is now Telegraph Street. Smaller fires were recorded in 1827, 1847 and 1852, each of which destroyed at least ten dwellings. Victorian Development The village's population boomed throughout the early 19th century, rising from 1100 in 1801 to 2300 in 1851. The Inclosure Acts in 1847 saw a widespread program of land ownership and road-building, resulting in improved road