Brampton

Brampton, with a population of some 4000, is built of local sandstone, and situated in a hollow formed by glacial action which took place during the ice-age. In the centre of the town is the octagonal Moot Hall, built in 1817, with an external staircase to its upper entrance, pointed windows and a square turret. The building now houses the Tourist Information Centre. East of the town is an exceptionally large motte, about 135 feet high. On it is a statue of the 7th Earl of Carlisle. Brampton Racecourse is a 21.1 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest north of Brampton in Cambridgeshire. The site is also a horse racing venue called Huntingdon Racecourse. The site is species-rich neutral grassland, a rare habitat in the county, in the flood plain of Alconbury Brook. Plants include salad burnet, pepper-saxifrage, and the largest population in of green-winged orchid in Cambridgeshire.