Editing River Lark (section)

==Course==
Rising at [[Bradfield Combust]],{{sfn |Blair |2006 |p=79}} to the south of [[Bury St Edmunds]] in Suffolk, it flows through Bury, [[Mildenhall, Suffolk|Mildenhall]] and [[Prickwillow]], and joins the Great Ouse south of [[Littleport, England|Littleport]] in Cambridgeshire. It is about {{convert|31|mi|km}} long, of which {{convert|10.1|mi|km}} is navigable.{{sfn |Blair |2006 |p=13}}

The upper river is an important focus for prehistoric activity, particularly relating to the Neolithic enclosure at Fornham All Saints. This comprises a large causewayed enclosure, several ring features, and a long [[cursus]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.suffolk.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/965877E1-6B93-4F16-BA2C-C06BF1E3002D/0/RollingEstatesandlands.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120213232841/http://www.suffolk.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/965877E1-6B93-4F16-BA2C-C06BF1E3002D/0/RollingEstatesandlands.pdf |archive-date=13 February 2012 |publisher=Suffolk County Council |title=Landscape Character Assessment |access-date=26 April 2009 |page=2}}</ref>

Just above Barton Mills, a side weir connects the river to the start of the [[Cut-off Channel]], a {{convert|28|mi|adj=on}} drain running from there to Denver along the south-eastern edge of the Fens, which was constructed in the 1950s and 1960s. During times of flood it carries the headwaters of the River Lark, the [[River Wissey]] and the [[River Little Ouse|Little Ouse]] to Denver Sluice on the River Great Ouse.{{sfn |Thirsk |2002}}

Below Barton Mills, the mill stream at Mildenhall marks the start of a footpath which follows the north bank of the river, passing [[Mildenhall Cricket Club]], to Isleham, after which there are footpaths and drove roads on both sides of the river to its junction with the Great Ouse. There is a weir at King's Staunch, after which comes Jude's Ferry, the current head of navigation, where boats at least {{convert|60|ft|m}} in length can be turned.  A magnificent hoard of late Roman silver was discovered at nearby Thistley Green in 1942, and the [[Mildenhall Treasure|34 pieces]], which included bowls, spoons, dishes and goblets, were declared to be [[Treasure trove]] and are now in the [[British Museum]].{{sfn |Blair |2006 |p=86}}

[[File:Barges on the River Lark.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Barges on the River Lark, c. 1910]]
The stretch from Jude's Ferry to Isleham includes several [[British hardened field defences of World War II|pill-boxes]], which were constructed during [[World War II]] to defend against invasion.{{sfn |Blair |2006 |p=84}} Above the start of the lock cut is a memorial to the famous [[Baptists|Baptist]] preacher [[Charles Spurgeon]], who was [[Baptism|baptised]] in the river on 3 May 1850. The site, where a chain ferry once crossed the river, and another near the weir were used for public baptisms until 1970. Isleham itself has three pubs, all dating from the 17th century, some shops and a large marina. There was an outbreak of cholera here in the 1850s, when over 500 people were "living in hollows" as a result of poverty which affected many fenland villages. In medieval times, Isleham was an important port with three quays. Remains of a Roman villa and over 6,000 Bronze-Age artefacts, which are now in the [[Bury St Edmunds#Culture|Moyse's Hall Museum]] at Bury St Edmunds, indicate that it has been a centre of occupation since antiquity.{{sfn |Blair |2006 |p=85}}

From Isleham to Prickwillow, the river flows for almost {{convert|4|mi|km}} in an artificial cut, thought to have been constructed by the Romans, and joined the River Great Ouse at Prickwillow until 1830. The Great Ouse was then diverted, and its old course occupied by the Lark.{{sfn |Boyes |Russell |1977 |p=178}} There are a number of pumping stations on the banks of this section, including the Lark Engine, which has been the main outlet for the drainage of the southern part of [[Burnt Fen]] since 1842.{{sfn |Beckett |1983 |pp=22–23}} Many of the surrounding ditches once flowed into the river by gravity, but the draining of the fens has resulted in the land surface dropping, and the water must now be raised by up to {{convert|16|ft|m}} from the ditches to the river. At Mile End, two pumping stations sit one above the other, indicating the progressive sinking of the land. Prickwillow is home to the [[Prickwillow Museum|Museum of Fen Pumping Engines]], itself once a working pumping station, and now holding several engines which were used in the draining of the Fens.{{sfn |Blair |2006 |p=84}}

Prickwillow vicarage also demonstrates the shrinking of the land. Its ground floor rooms were originally the cellars, and the two steps leading to the front door have been replaced by nine. Below Prickwillow, the river is crossed by the Ely to Norwich railway line. The final {{convert|0.9|mi|km}} of the river's course are quite straight, as the river flows through another artificial channel.{{sfn |Blair |2006 |p=79}} At its junction with the Great Ouse, the channel is crossed by a road which was formerly the [[A10 road (England)|A10]], which ran along the banks of the Great Ouse at this point on its route from Ely to Littleport,{{sfn |Blair |2006 |p=80}} but this section has been bypassed by a new alignment of the road further to the west.<ref>Ordnance Survey, 1:25000 map</ref>