Overview of March

March is a Fenland market town and civil parish in the Isle of Ely area of Cambridgeshire, England. March was the county town of the Isle of Ely, a separate administrative county between 1889 and 1965, and is now the administrative centre of Fenland District Council. The town was an important railway centre, with a major junction station on the Great Eastern and Great Northern railways, 88 miles (142 km) from London by rail, 29 miles (47 km) north of Cambridge, 14 miles (23 km) north west of Ely and 9 miles (14 km) south of Wisbech. Like many Fenland towns, March was once an island surrounded by marshes. It occupied the second largest "island" in the Great Level. As the land drained, the town grew and prospered as a trading and religious centre. It was also a minor port and, in more recent times, a market town and an administrative and railway centre. The town is situated on the banks of the old course of the River Nene, which is navigable, and today mainly used by pleasure boats.