THE historic market town of St Ives will next year mark 900 years since it was granted its charter by King Henry I, and you could become a part of the celebrations. The charter was granted to Ramsey Abbey in 1110, allowing an annual fair to be held in St

THE historic market town of St Ives will next year mark 900 years since it was granted its charter by King Henry I, and you could become a part of the celebrations.

The charter was granted to Ramsey Abbey in 1110, allowing an annual fair to be held in St Ives.

The fair traditionally started on the Wednesday after Easter and continued for a week.

For the next 400 years, the fair put St Ives on the map and was considered one of the most important fairs held in England - the mathematical rhyme 'As I Was Going to St Ives' refers to the St Ives in Cambridgeshire, and not the one in Cornwall.

Events will be held throughout next year to celebrate the nonacentenary.

But to get things started the town, with support from The Hunts Post, is calling on a young artist to design an anniversary logo.

This great opportunity for one young person - aged 18 and under - will not only see their winning logo printed on all the flags, banners and other merchandise, but will also win them a family trip to Legoland in Windsor.

The logo should have as its two main elements the figure of St Ivo and a Roundhead as the celebrations next year will include concerts, parades and re-enactments of battles between Roundheads and Cavaliers.

Bob Burn-Murdoch, curator of the Norris Museum in St Ives and a member of the St Ives 900 committee said: "The children's competition to design a logo, launched in The Hunts Post, is a good way to begin the celebrations and to get the community involved."

The history of St Ives goes back far beyond the charter. There were settlements in the area during the Bronze and Iron ages and the Romans settled there.

However, the history of the present town really begins in Saxon times when the area was settled in around the year 500 AD and was called Slepe - an old Saxon word meaning muddy.

St Ives became St Ives after the discovery of a stone coffin containing human remains. The local smith apparently, had a series of visions after the find in which a figure appeared claiming to be the Persian Bishop Ivo. Abbot Eadnoth of Ramsey was convinced that the stone coffin contained the saint's remains and renamed Slepe as St Ives.

INFORMATION: To enter the competition, send your drawing or painting to: St Ives 900 Competition, The Hunts Post, 30 High Street, Huntingdon, PE29 3TB. Don't forget to put your full name, address, age and a daytime telephone number on the back of the entry, which must be signed by an adult to verify that it is your own work. Entries must reach us by Wednesday, May 15 .Usual Archant competition rules apply.

The entries will be judge by the St Ives 900 committee which has representatives from groups including St Ives Town Council, St Ives Royal British Legion, St Ives Choral Society, The Norris Museum, St Ives Rotary Club, The English Civil War Society and The Hunts Post.