Upper Clapton - History

History

Clapton was from 1339 until the 18th century normally rendered as Clopton, meaning the "farm on the hill". The Old English clop - "lump" or "hill" - presumably denoted the high ground which rises from the River Lea. Eventually encompassing the north-eastern quarter of the parish, Clapton grew up along the way which in 1745 was called Hackney Lane, part of which ran through Broad (later Clapton) Common. Building spread to meet streets east of the high road and north of Homerton in the 19th century. Manorial courts from the early 19th century distinguished the parts north and south of Lea Bridge Road as Upper and Lower Clapton, and those names soon passed into general use. Hackney Lane came to be known as Lower and Upper Clapton roads, until in the late 19th century the stretch through the common to Stamford Hill was named Clapton Common.

The area, along with Lower Clapton, was known in the 1990s and early 2000s for drug and gun related crimes, gaining it the nickname "Murder Mile." As well as being featured in the film Bullet Boy, Clapton's reputation was highlighted in an episode of Channel 4's satirical TV show Brass Eye in 1997, which claimed that the petrol station is shoplifted every 30 minutes.