Epping 5.3

Epping is a market town and civil parish in the Epping Forest district of the County of Essex, England. It is located 3mi northeast of Loughton, 5mi south of Harlow and 11mi northwest of Brentwood.Although it is the terminus for London Underground's Central Line, the town retains some elements of rurality, being surrounded by Epping Forest and working farmland. Epping has many very old buildings, some of which are Grade I and II listed buildings. The town also retains its weekly market which is held every Monday and dates back to 1253. In 2001 the parish had a population of 11,047 although this has increased marginally since then to 11,461 at the 2011 CensusEpping has been twinned with the German town of Eppingen in north-west Baden-Württemberg since 1981. Although the once-famous Epping Butter, which was highly sought after in the 18th and 19th centuries, is no longer made, the well-known Epping sausages are still manufactured by Church's Butchers who have been trading on the same site since 1888.History"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 vigorous clearing of the 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).