The town name comes from the Old English name (as recorded in the Domesday Book) for the area, Cestrehunt, which probably refers to a "castle, erected by the Romans", the word cestre (along with the form ceastre), or even its modern forms, chester and caster being derived from the Latincastrum meaning "fort".[2][3] This is commemorated in the arms of the former Cheshunt urban district council.
Cheshunt was a settlement on Ermine Street, the main Roman road leading north from London.[4] Before the Norman Conquest, the manor of Cheshunt was held by Eddeva the Fair, but William I granted it to Alan of Brittany. The parish church of St Mary the Virgin was first recorded in a charter of 1146, but was entirely rebuilt between 1418 and 1448 with a three-stage tower topped by an octagonal turret.[5]
In 1825, Cheshunt was also the location of the Cheshunt Railway. Running from the town's High Street to the River Lea near the present-day Cheshunt railway station, this 0.75 mi (1.21 km) horse-drawn line was the first passenger-carrying monorail and the first railway line to be built in Hertfordshire.[8][9]
The town's Bury Green neighbourhood was once the home of singer Cliff Richard. Lotus Cars as well as the central headquarters the Debenhams store chain were formerly located in Cheshunt, and the headquarters of Tesco, the UK's largest supermarket chain, was located here until 2016. In 2002, Cheshunt hosted the only officially licensed European BotCon convention ever.
In 1957, a review of how London was governed was undertaken by government and led by Sir Edwin Herbert, who was appointed to create a new administrative area for London which encompassed more of the city's conurbation than the existing one. Initially, Cheshunt (including Waltham Cross) was planned to become part of a borough with Enfield; however, the plan was eventually dropped and Cheshunt did not become part of Greater London.[10]
Services in Cheshunt include the Brookfield Centre, which includes Next, Boots, Argos, River Island and Marks & Spencer stores, as well as a large Tesco Extra store. There was a Marriott Hotel nearby (which closed in 2020), and the town centre includes a wide variety of smaller shops.
Being located in the Lea Valley, Cheshunt has access to the Lee Valley Park. The park is accessible at many points, one being extremely close to the town's railway station at Windmill Lane.
At 8:00 am on 12 August 1944, a Consolidated B-24 Liberator bomber from the United States Army Air Forces392nd Bombardment Group (Heavy), based at RAF Wendling, crashed next to Maxwells Farm, near Cheshunt, killing all ten crew.[13][14] The section of the B198 which runs near the crash site has been renamed Lieutenant Ellis Way, after the pilot, who managed to avoid crashing into the nearby town. One of the firemen who attended the scene secured funding in 2010 for a permanent memorial at the scene (at the entrance to St Mary's School).[15]
On 13 July 1850 the parish of Cheshunt was made a local board of health district.[21] After elections, the first meeting of the Cheshunt Local Board of Health was held in October 1850, with John Sanders being appointed the first chairman of the board.[22] Under the Local Government Act 1894, Cheshunt Local Board became Cheshunt Urban District Council on 31 December 1894. For the first few years the council used St Mary's Hall on College Road as its offices and meeting place, as the Local Board had done.[23][24]
Around 1901 the council moved to a large 1860s house called the Manor House at 22 Turners Hill (not to be confused with Cheshunt Great House).[25][26] Cheshunt's public library was built in the grounds of the Manor House in 1907.[27]
Cheshunt Urban District Council was granted a coat of arms on 25 November 1944.[28]
Cheshunt Urban District was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972, becoming part of the borough of Broxbourne on 1 April 1974. No successor parish was created for the town, and so it became an unparished area. The Manor House was demolished in the 1980s and Edwards Court built on the site.[29]
Tesco House, former Tesco head office, in Delamare Road, Cheshunt
Cheshunt's best-known employer was Tesco, whose head office was in Delamare Road, Cheshunt for many years. A small store in the town centre is still open today, while "Home 'n' Wear" store, which was situated across the Old Pond in College Road, is now closed.[30] In 1983 a new out-of-town Tesco store located to the north of the town opened, named "Brookfield Farm". It later expanded, a branch of Marks & Spencer was built next door, and the entire estate was renamed "The Brookfield Centre". Tesco announced in 2015 that it would move its headquarters to Welwyn Garden City.[31][32]
Until the late 1960s the main land use around Cheshunt was for its nursery industry, and many new techniques for growing under glass were developed here. Thomas Rochford had a large concern here, although now almost all the glasshouses have been redeveloped into housing estates. This is often reflected in the names of the roads or estates, such as Rosedale or Thomas Rochford Way. A small amount of nursery trade survives to the west of the town. The neighbouring town of Goffs Oak had a large number of nurseries as well as a large garden centre, but these have since been closed and redeveloped as mid-range housing developments.
The River Lee Navigation passes the east of Cheshunt and was used for the transport of flowers and crops to the London markets for many years until road transport became more viable. A wharf existed just east of the railway on the site now occupied by Herts Young Mariners Base. The Youth Hostel was built on the site of the derelict open-air swimming pool.[33]
"Cheshunt Compound", a fungicide developed at the Cheshunt Research Station, was widely used by amateur and professional gardeners but has been withdrawn from sale in the UK since November 2010 and it is no longer legal to use it.[34] It was a mixture of copper sulphate and ammonium carbonate.[35]
The non-conformist theological collegeCheshunt College moved to Cheshunt in the 1790s from Trevecca, Brecknockshire. It moved to Cambridge in 1905. Between 1909 and 1968 the buildings were occupied by the Church of England's Bishop's College.[40] Since 1972 they have been council offices and formerly a music and business school (typing and accountancy), which had to be demolished due to it being unsafe. In the 1980s parts of the building were so unsafe it was closed and demolished. The main problem was the floors had begun to disintegrate. A new council office was built on the site of the old school. The council chamber and registry office are now in the same building that contains the "Huntingdon Rooms".[citation needed]
Town centre
The Old Pond area is located in the centre of Cheshunt and is home to many local businesses. With roads leading to the M25, A10 and towards Broxbourne.
The 242, 310 and 410 bus routes pass through the town centre. The Laura Trott Leisure Centre is close by.
Before the 2012 London Olympics the Olympic Torch was carried close to the Old Pond by selected and nominated local residents. After the Olympics, gold medal winner Laura Kenny had two postboxes painted gold in her honour, one at the Old Pond.[41]
The town also has long-established rugby and cricket clubs and a publicly owned 18-hole golf course.[43]
Formerly Grundy Park Leisure Centre, the Laura Trott Leisure Centre was renamed after £4m redevelopment to honour the Olympic gold medallist. Trott attended the launch on the morning before competing in stage four of the first Women's Tour from Cheshunt to Welwyn Garden City.[44]
Cheshunt Community Sports Park includes indoor and outdoor bowls courts. Further bowling facilities are available at Whit Hern Park (lawn bowls) and Cedars Park (boules).
Crossrail 2 will connect north-east London to south-west London when constructed and is proposed to stop at Cheshunt station, along with improving the station.[47]
As part of the Connect2 project a new cycle link over the A10 was proposed in 2007.[48] The scheme involved the building of a new cycle bridge over the A10 and connecting paths to link Theobalds Lane with Lieutenant Ellis Way. The bridge was opened in 2010 as the "Paul Cully Bridge" after a late local civil servant.[49] £500,000 of this cost is funded by the Big Lottery Fund via the Connect2 project.[50]
^The house was occupied by a family called Gower in the 1901 census (taken on 31 March 1901), when it is listed as 22 Turners Hill, whilst the Kelly's Directory of 1902 records the council as being based at Manor House.
^Broxbourne Planning Application 7/710/1987 for: Demolition former Council Offices and erection of 3-storey building comprising 51 sheltered flats with house manager’s apartment, ancillary accommodation and car parking, at Manor House / Glen Luce, Turners Hill, Cheshunt
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