Leatherhead, Surrey
| Leatherhead | |
|---|---|
 Bridge Street, Leatherhead |
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 Leatherhead
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| Leatherhead shown within Surrey | |
| Area | 12.54 km2 (4.84 sq mi) |
| Population | 11,316 (2011 census) |
| • Density | 902/km2 (2,340/sq mi) |
| OS grid reference | TQ1656 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LEATHERHEAD |
| Postcode district | KT22 |
| Dialling code | 01372 |
| Police | Surrey |
| Fire | Surrey |
| Ambulance | South East Coast |
| EU Parliament | South East England |
| UK Parliament | |
Leatherhead is a town in Surrey, England on the right bank of the River Mole, and at the edge of the contiguous built-up area of London. Its local district is Mole Valley. Records exist of the place from Anglo Saxon England. It has a combined theatre and cinema, which is at the centre of the re-modelling following late 20th century pedestrianisation. The bypass streets to the town centre close and feature annually in the London-Surrey cycle classic which is ranked by the world's cycling federation.
Just north-east of the midpoint of Surrey and at a junction of ancient north–south and east–west roads, elements of the town have been a focus for transport throughout its history. A main early spur to this was the construction of the bridge over the seasonally navigable River Mole in the early medieval period. Later the Swan Hotel provided 300 years of service to horse-drawn coaches. In the late 20th century the M25 motorway was built nearby.
The origins of the town of Leatherhead are Anglo-Saxon. Ashtead lay within the Copthorne hundred by the formation of the Kingdom of England. Leatherhead Museum has traced the history of the town from its beginnings in about AD 880 when it was known as Leodridan meaning "place where people [can] ride [across the river]" in the Anglo-Saxon (Old English). Later in the Domesday Book of 1086 it was called Leret. Later forms recorded are "Lereda", "Ledreda", "Leddrede" (all second half of 12th century). The early settlement appears to have grown up on the east side of the River Mole, although Hawk's Hill, on the west side of the river, is said to be the site of an old Saxon burial ground.
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Wikipedia