Egham

Egham - Runnymede Bridge Late Bronze Age site Various episodes of excavation were carried out...
Egham Museum resources Egham Museum, on the first floor of the Literar...

Egham Hythe sits opposite Staines town centre on the south bank of the River Thames. It is a natural mooring spot for boats on account of the bends in the river and the meeting with the River Colne to the north.

Egham, High Street c1900. (Neg. E27301) © Copyright The Francis Frith Collection 2008. http://www.francisfrith.com

Egham, High Street, c.1900
Reproduced courtesy of The Francis Frith Collection

It remains an attractive area which led to former bridging points of the river when Staines was approached directly into what is now the Market Square. The remains of an early stone bridge of 1803 can be seen in the grounds of Ye Olde Bridge Cottage. The present Staines Bridge was opened in 1832 upstream of the historic sites, and the Hythe has been saved from modern traffic volumes. Nearby is Runnymede, where Magna Carta was signed in 1215. The RAF memorial is on the top of Cooper's Hill.

5894_Egham_Obelisk
Obelisk in Windsor Park, memorial to the Duke of Cumberland
Photographic Survey and Record of Surrey no. 5894

There remain many buildings of interest and for those to the north the elevations overlooking the river and across to Staines are particularly important visually.

Click here to read about Holloway Sanatorium, founded in 1885 by a wealthy entrepreneur called Thomas Holloway.

Did You Know?

A Late Bronze Age (2500 -700BC) settlement at Petters Sport Field, Egham, was excavated in the 1970s. The major finds were a hoard of about 80 pieces of bronze tools in a ditch. The hoard was possibly put there as a ritual when the site was abandoned.