Houghton and Wyton are adjacent villages on the North bank of the River Great Ouse between Huntingdon and St Ives that administratively have been treated as one since 1934.

The main local attraction is Houghton Mill, a mainly 18th to 19th Century structure.   The mill ceased operation in the 1930s and was gifted to The National Trust in 1939.  It was subsequently used as a Youth Hostel until 1983, but since then it has been opened to the public in the summer season.  Much of the original machinery remains, and a water wheel was re-installed in 1998.  Visitors may now see milling done in the traditional way.  Next to the mill, and also owned by The Trust, is a very pleasant caravan and camping site.

The river is an attractive feature of the village.  There are several walks along its banks, and watching boats passing through the lock is a popular summer pastime.  In addition, the facilities of the bowling and tennis clubs are available to visitors by arrangement.

The centre of the village is “The Green”, the remnant of a much larger area and which had in living memory still a small area of grass but now is all tarmac.  Prominently placed in the middle of The Green is a thatched clock tower built at the turn of the last century.  Around the edges of The Green are the village shops, a hairdresser and the Post Office.

There were two churches, that in Wyton was dedicated to St. Margaret and All Saints.  It was made redundant in 1974 and is now being converted into a private residence. It is of mainly 13th to 14th Century work but was extensively restored in 1841 - 67.  The active church, St. Mary’s in Houghton, is also mainly 13th to 15th Century, but it too was restored in Victorian times.  Of particular note, St. Mary’s has a magnificent 14th Century spire which houses six bells, one 16th Century, four 17th Century and one modern. These are regularly rung for services.

There are many interesting buildings in the village.  The oldest is a 15th Century house on the North side of The Green that was once a pub.   Other old buildings include the two pubs “Three Jolly Butchers” in Wyton (1622) and the slightly later “The Three Horseshoes” in Houghton, and several yeoman farmers’ houses from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.  More modern buildings include the two Rectories, one in each village, The Elms in Thicket Road designed in 1863 by the architect William Edis, Houghton Hill House and The Grange.  There are several modern estates but these are well integrated into the old village.
 
The twin villages boast also a number of prominent former residents. The foremost was Potto Brown (1797-1871), known as The Village Philanthropist, and whose monument is in The Green.  He worked Houghton Mill, built the village non-conformist chapel, founded the village school and died a wealthy man although poor when he started his business life. Joseph Goodman (1799-1844) was Potto’s partner in the mill and chapel, and George Brown was the builder of The Elms and the younger son of Potto.  Several artists have lived in the village including Charles Whymper, who built the clock tower in memory of his father-in-law George Brown, and William Watt-Milne.

The Parish also includes Royal Air Force Station Wyton, which was built in the First World War and housed aircrew-training units.  The Station was re-built in the late 1930s and was operational as a bomber station in the Second World War, particularly with squadrons of The Pathfinder Force.  After that war the station housed several diverse flying units.  Today the station is a centre for logistic support to the Royal Air Force and home to the Cambridge and London University Air Squadrons.