Early St Neots
The name St Neots is derived from St Neot, a Cornish hermit who lived in the 9th century. In 974, monks brought his bones to St Neot. They built a priory (a small monastery), called St Neots Priory. A small village grew up by the priory and was named after it.
At the time of the Domesday Book in 1086, St Neots was a tiny place with a population of less than 100. However, in 1130, the priory was given a charter allowing it to hold weekly markets. As a result, a thriving town grew up beside it.
St Mary’s Church was first built in the 12th century, but it was mostly rebuilt in the 15th century. The tower was completed about 1530.
In 1539, Henry VIII dissolved St Neots Priory. It was demolished, and the materials were used for local buildings. Meanwhile, the little town flourished because its bridge across the River Ouse brought much traffic to the town.
The bridge across the Ouse was the scene of a skirmish between Royalists and Parliamentarians in 1648. The Parliamentarians won.
In the 18th and early 19th centuries, St Neots was an important stagecoaching town, as it was on the Great North Road, the main road between London and Edinburgh. However, the stagecoaches ended with the coming of the railways.
In 1769, John Bellingham was born in St Neots. In 1812, he shot the Prime Minister Spencer Perceval. Bellingham was hanged.
Modern St Neots
In 1801, the population of St Neots was 1,752. It was a tiny market town. However, it grew during the 19th century, and by 1901 its population was around 5,300.
In 1819, the Paving and Lighting Act created a group of men with powers to pave and light the streets. (At first they were lit by oil lamps, later by gas). The railway reached St Neots in 1850.
In the 19th century, there was a brewing industry in the town, as well as paper making.
In 1964, the 17th-century stone bridge was demolished and replaced. A new library opened in St Neots in 1985. St Neots Museum opened in 1995. St Neots Market Square was renovated in 2025. The same year St Neots Fire Station was renovated.
During the 20th century, the population of St Neots grew rapidly. By 2001 it had reached 27,480. Today, the population of St Neots is about 34,000.