History of Loughton - Twentieth Century

Twentieth Century

Direct omnibus services linked Loughton to London from 1915. The old No. 10 route from Victoria to Abridge via Loughton survived until 1976 (a modern derivative, paid for by Essex County Council, again numbered 10, linked Loughton and Abridge until 2007), and the No. 20 service from Leyton to Epping survives, though it has terminated in Loughton since 1976 and now only runs from Walthamstow to Debden. The No. 167 route runs from Debden to Ilford.

During the First World War, anti-aircraft positions were located in Epping Forest as part of the wider defences of London, but action was minor compared to the Second World War. There are however residents still alive who recall hearing the Silvertown explosion in 1917, when a TNT factory in the Royal Docks blew up killing 73 people. The sound of the blast could be heard from The Wash to Brighton.

On the very first day of the Blitz, 7 September 1940 ("Black Saturday"), a Hurricane from 303 Squadron crashed onto an air-raid shelter in Roding Road, killing three occupants. The Polish pilot bailed out, and was promptly arrested as he could speak virtually no English. Also killed by "friendly fire" was PC Albert Hinds, blown up outside Loughton Police Station by a shell from an anti-aircraft battery in Nursery Road. Two A.R.P. men nearby died later from their injuries. A memorial plaque placed on the police station in 2005 commemorates all Loughton's civilian war dead; it is one of very few UK civilian war memorials. Even before the Blitz had begun, there was sporadic German bombing; two people were killed in The Drive on 26 July 1940, the first fatalities of the war in the London Civil Defence Region. In a 1941 raid, farms were damaged in Loughton and Debden, while a gun battery at Loughton Hall was hit, killing a soldier. At Staples Road Schools, the white-painted air-raid shelter directions are still clearly visible: CASUALTY ENTRANCE - THROUGH AIRLOCK BY SANDBAGS. Staples Road school had until 2006 the unique distinction of having amongst its alumni both the Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, and the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, Mike Gapes.

There has been much post-war rebuilding and infilling; the church of St. Edmund of Canterbury, in Traps Hill, is an example of modern church architecture, built in 1958 following a disastrous fire in an earlier building. Another notable modern church is Loughton Methodist Church, opened in 1987. The Victorian St Mary's Church has had a foyer and modern hall attached in 2008 and all the pews removed. The police station was rebuilt in 1963/64. There has also been some post-war rebuilding of High Road shops, notably Centric Parade, which dates from 1983, but is effectively a new facade built on to the former London Cooperative Society supermarket, one of the largest in the UK when opened in 1962, with roof-top car park. The M11 motorway linking London to Cambridge passes very close to Loughton; this part of the motorway was opened in 1977. Light industrial units proliferated along the Roding valley between 1975–2000, notably in Langston Road where the Bank of England printing works is located. The printing works were taken over by De La Rue in 2003 when the company won the contract to print and supply UK banknotes. The headquarters of the UK greeting cards company Clinton Cards is also located in Langston Road.

From 1900 to 1933, Loughton was governed by the Loughton Urban District Council. From 1933 to 1974 it was part of the Chigwell Urban District together with Buckhurst Hill and Chigwell. Since 1996, Loughton has had its own town council.