Epping, Essex

 

"Epinga", a small community of a few scattered farms and a chapel on the edge of the forest, is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086. However, the settlement referred to is known today as Epping Upland. It is not known for certain when the present-day Epping was first settled. By the mid-12th century a settlement known as Epping Heath (later named Epping Street), had developed south of Epping Upland as a result of the clearing of forest for cultivation. In 1253 King Henry III conveyed the right to hold a weekly market in Epping Street which helped to establish the town as a centre of trade and has continued to the present day (the sale of cattle in the High Street continued until 1961).^[5]

The linear village of Epping Heath developed into a small main-road town and by the early 19th century development had taken place along what is now High Street and Hemnall Street. Hemnall Street was until 1894 in the parish of Theydon Garnon, as was the railway station.^[6] Up to 25 stagecoaches and mailcoaches a day passed through the town from London en route to Norwich, Cambridge and Bury St. Edmunds. In the early 19th century, 26 coaching inns lined the High Street.^[7] Two survive today as public houses: The George and Dragon and The Black Lion. The advent of the railways ended coach traffic and the town declined, but it revived after the extension of a railway branch line from Loughton in 1865 and the advent of the motor car.

A number of listed buildings, most dating from the 18th century, line both sides of the High Street although many were substantially altered internally during the 19th century. Some of the oldest buildings in the town are at each end of the Conservation Area, such as Beulah Lodge in Lindsey Street (17th century), and a group of 17th- and early 18th-century cottages numbered 98–110 on High Street.^[8]

The original parish church, first mentioned in 1177, was All Saints' in Epping Upland, the nave and chancel of which date from the 13th Century.^[9] In 1833, the 14th-century chapel of St John the Baptist in the High Road was rebuilt in the Gothic Revival style. It became the parish church of Epping in 1888 and was again rebuilt. A large tower was added in 1909.^[10]

The town is known in some quarters for the Epping sausage, and, in the 18th and 19th centuries, for Epping butter.^{[citation needed]}

 

There are three tiers of local government covering Epping, at parish (town), district and county level: Epping Town Council, Epping Forest District Council and Essex County Council. The town council is based at Epping Hall on St John's Road.^[11] The district council is also based in the town, at the Civic Offices on High Street.^[12] The Old Town Hall was built in 1863.^[13]

The town sits in the Epping and Theydon Bois division of Essex County Council. The town is divided into two district council wards. Epping Hemnall encompasses most of the town south-east of Epping High Street (B1393) including Ivy Chimneys, Fiddlers Hamlet, Coopersale and Coopersale Street. The rest of Epping lies in Epping Lindsey and Thornwood ward, as does Thornwood in the adjacent parish of North Weald Bassett. Both wards elect three councillors each.^[14]

Epping was an ancient parish. When elected parish and district councils were created in 1894, Epping was initially given a parish council and included in the Epping Rural District.^[15] Shortly afterwards it was decided that the town should become a separate urban district, but the more rural north-western part of the parish, including the original village of Epping, was not considered appropriate for inclusion in an urban district. Therefore the parish was split on 1 April 1896 into a rural parish called Epping Upland, which remained in the Epping Rural District, and an urban district called Epping (which also gained territory from the neighbouring parishes of Theydon Garnon and Theydon Bois at the same time).^[16]

Epping Urban District was abolished in 1974 when the modern Epping Forest District was created. A successor parish was created covering the area of the former urban district, with its parish council taking the name Epping Town Council.^[17]

Epping is part of the Epping Forest parliamentary constituency, represented by Conservative MP Neil Hudson and previously represented by former Deputy Speaker Eleanor Laing before the 2024 General Election. From 1924 to 1945, the old Epping division of Essex (which included Woodford, Chingford, Harlow and Loughton as well as Epping) was represented by Winston Churchill.

Epping is 17 miles (30 km) north-east of the centre of London, and towards the northern end of Epping Forest on a ridge of land between the River Roding and River Lea valleys. It is 3 miles (5 km) north-east of Loughton, 10 miles (16 km) north of Ilford, 5 miles (8 km) south of Harlow and 11 miles (20 km) north-west of Brentwood. Epping is north of the village of Theydon Bois.

The Town lies north-east of junction 26 (Waltham Abbey, Loughton A121) of the M25 motorway and south-west of junction 7 (Harlow) of the M11 motorway.

 

Most of the population live in the built up area centred on and around the High Street (B1393) and Station Road. About a thousand people live in the village of Coopersale which, while physically separated from Epping by forest land, is still part of the civil parish. A few dozen households make up the hamlets of Coopersale Street and Fiddlers Hamlet. Much of the eastern part of the present parish was until 1896 in the parish of Theydon Garnon.^[6]

Epping market attracts shoppers from surrounding villages and towns every Monday. A prominent building in Epping is the District Council's office with its clock tower, designed to bring balance to the High Street with the old Gothic Revival water tower at the southern end, built in 1872, and St John's Church tower in the centre.^{[citation needed]} The centre of Epping on and around the High Street is a designated conservation area.^[18]

 

 

Epping is served by several rail, bus and road routes, as well as walking trails.

Epping tube station is a London Underground terminus, on the Central line.^[19]

The station is in London fare zone 6, and accepts Oyster and contactless payment methods.^[19] There is a car park at the station.^[20] There is no Night Tube, as Central line services overnight on Fridays and Saturdays terminate at Loughton.^[21]

The Central line links Epping directly with East London, Stratford, The City, Oxford Street, and destinations in West London.^[19]

Until 1994, the Central line extended north from Epping to North Weald, Blake Hall (until 1981), and Ongar.^[22][23] Much of the line is now served by a heritage railway - the Epping Ongar Railway. The heritage railway does not serve Epping tube station, but the museum runs a heritage London Bus to the Central line station on some open days.^[24]

The nearest mainline stations to Epping are at Roydon, Harlow and Waltham Cross. Services from these stations are operated by Greater Anglia and link the area directly with London Liverpool Street, Stratford, Hertford, Cambridge and Stansted Airport.^[25]

Route Number	Terminals		Via	Operator	Notes
13/13A/13C	Waltham Cross	Epping	Waltham Abbey, Upshire	Central Connect	Mon-Sat
18/18C	Loughton tube station	North Weald	Debden tube station, Abridge, Theydon Bois, Epping	Central Connect	Mon-Sat
19	Harlow	Chelmsford	Thornwood, Epping, North Weald, Ongar	First Essex	Mon- Fri
20	Ongar	Harlow	North Weald, Epping, Thornwood Common	Central Connect	Mon-Sun
21	Epping	Harlow	Thornwood Common, Potter Street, Brays Grove	Central Connect	Mon- Sat
22	Epping	Harlow	North Weald, Potter Street	Central Connect	Mon- Sun
31	Coopersale	Harlow	Epping, Epping Green, Roydon	Central Connect	Mon-Sat
620	Abridge	Ingatestone	North Weald, Ongar	First Essex	Mon -Fri

Epping High Street is numbered the B1393. The route runs north-south through the town.

To the north, the B1393 carries traffic to the Hastingwood Interchange, where it meets the M11 motorway for Cambridge, Stansted Airport and London (Junction 7), as well as the A414 for Harlow and Chelmsford. Southbound traffic meets the Wake Arms roundabout for the A104 to Woodford and the North Circular Road, and the A121 for Loughton, Waltham Abbey and the M25 London Orbital.

The B181 runs east-west through Epping, between Roydon and North Weald.

The B182 runs along the south-western perimeter of the town, between Epping's Bell Common and Epping Upland.

These roads are maintained by Essex Highways.^[26]

The M11 bypasses the town to the east, and the M25 bypasses Epping to the south. M25 traffic passes underneath Bell Common through a tunnel.

Much of Epping Forest has unlimited walking access. The City of London Corporation, which looks after Epping Forest, has produced several waymarked walking routes for leisure.^[27]

There are waymarked footpaths between the town and surrounding villages, such as Coopersale and Theydon Bois.

Epping and the surrounding forest is popular with cyclists.^[28] There are no cycle lanes on the B1393, but a cycle lane runs alongside the A104 between Walthamstow in London and the Wake Arms roundabout.

• Epping St John's School, a Church of England school, is the only mainstream secondary school in Epping. It has an active charity fundraising group led by a Student Executive team. In 2020 two hundred students were awarded the Rotary Prize for 'Service to Schools was in Essex' by the local Epping Rotary Club.
• The Tower School, a special educational needs school at the top of Tower Road, just off of the B1393.
• Coopersale Hall School, a prep school at the end of Centre Drive Lane, Epping.^[29]
• Ivy Chimneys Primary School, a primary school located in Ivy Chimneys, Epping.
• Epping Primary School
• Coopersale and Theydon Garnon C.E. (Vol.Cont.) Primary School. A primary school located in Coopersale village.

Because of its close proximity to London, television signals are received from the Crystal Palace TV transmitter placing Epping in the BBC London and ITV London areas. ^[30] However, the town can also receive the Sandy Heath TV transmitter which broadcast BBC East and ITV Anglia. ^[31]

Local radio stations are BBC Essex on 95.3 FM, Heart Essex (formerly Ten-17) on 101.7 FM, and Forest Gold Radio, a community based radio station the broadcast from near the St Margaret's Hospital in the town on 99.3 FM. ^[32]

The Epping Forest Guardian is town's local newspaper. ^[33]

Epping Town played in the Isthmian League until folding during the 1984–85 season. Epping FC currently play in the Essex Olympian Football League. Both have played at Stonards Hill. There are two cricket clubs at the south of the town: Epping Cricket Club at Lower Bury Lane, and Epping Foresters Cricket Club at Bell Common which is partly in the neighbouring parish of Epping Upland. Epping Foresters ground is on top of the M25 motorway (Bell Common Tunnel).

• List of twin towns and sister cities in the United Kingdom

• Epping Forest District Council (2005). Key Facts: 2001 Census (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 February 2006.
• Epping Town Guide. Plus Publishing Services (on behalf of Epping Town Council. 2002.
• Jenkins (2001). Churchill. Macmillan. pp. 391–392. ISBN 0-330-48805-8.
• Parish Profile: Epping – information about Epping from the 2001 census (PDF file)

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Epping.

• Epping Forest District Council