Bishops Stortford, like many surrounding areas in an ancient market town build up around the ford over the river known as the Stort. Many Roman roads crossed this area with at least one crossing the river where what is now the Town Meads. The town and its castle were sold to the Bishops of London in 1060, whereupon the town was called Bishops Estereferd, which later corrupted to its present name, Bishops Stortford.
In the 13th Century, the town was involved in a dispute between the current ruler of the century, King John, and the Pope. King John seized the town from the Bishop and ordered the castle to be destroyed in 1208. Although later in 1214 he had to pay for it to be rebuilt.
Built on the border with Essex, Bishops Stortford became a thriving market town achieving a population of 2,300 by the year 1801 and grew to 5,300 in the 19th Century. The opening of a railway made it a favourable commuting area to London, which is now reachable in 40 minutes by rail.
By the turn of the century the population was 7,000 and by 1950 it had exceeded 12,000. Following the development of Thorley Park in 1991, Bishops Stortford had a population of more than 27,000. Despite the impressive growth throughout the years, Bishop Stortford still boasts 90 acres of park land and open space with green wedges into the centre of the town from the Metropolitan Green Belt.
The Mural, depicting history from the Ice Age to the 1990s, can be found in the main halls of the Rhodes Centre, showing building and architectural designs, modes of transport and local attractions throughout the years. The mural itself measures 8.4m long by 1.5m high and its worked on by 142 towns' people. In 1992, the mural was presented at Alexandra Palace and at Harrogate encouraging other local communities to record their local history in needlework.
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