Bishop's Stortford#religion

The origins of the town's name are uncertain. One possibility is that the Saxon settlement derives its name from 'Steorta's ford' or 'tail ford', in the sense of a 'tail', or tongue, of land.{{Cite web |title=Key to English Place-names |url=http://kepn.nottingham.ac.uk/map/place/Hertfordshire/Bishops%20Stortford |access-date=2022-02-19 |website=kepn.nottingham.ac.uk}}{{cite book |author1=Hanks, Patrick |title=The Oxford Names Companion |author2=Hodges, Flavia |author3=Mills, David |author4=Room, Adrián |date=2002 |publisher=the University Press |isbn=0198605617 |location=Oxford}} The town became known as Bishop's Stortford due to the acquisition in 1060 by the Bishop of London.

The River Stort is named after the town, and not the town after the river. When cartographers visited the town in the 16th century, they reasoned that the town must have been named after the ford in the river and assumed the river was called the Stort.{{cite web |title=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley: A History and Guide |work=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley - A History & Guide |url=http://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide11/stort-navigation/ |access-date=2013-10-27}}

Little is known of Stortford until the Roman era, with the evidence being small archaeological finds. Limited evidence of ancient Mesolithic and Microlithic peoples in the form of flakes, cores and an axe have been found on the Meads and Silverleys respectively. Most Bronze Age evidence is from the neighbouring parish of Thorley to the south as opposed to Stortford proper, but a 3,000 year old socketed spearhead has been found at Haymeads Lane within the town. Evidence of settlement has been found on Dunmow Road dating from the Middle Bronze Age through to Romano-British times. In Bishop's Stortford: A History, Jacqueline Cooper concludes "existing evidence suggests that the Stortford area was settled only sparsely in prehistoric times, and nearby places like Braughing and Little Hallingbury were of more importance."{{Cite book|last=Cooper|first=Jacqueline|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/63788286|title=Bishop's Stortford : a history|date=2005|publisher=Phillimore|isbn=1-86077-329-X|location=Chichester, West Sussex, England|pages=2–4|oclc=63788286}}

Stortford was on the line of the Roman road, Stane Street, which ran from St Albans to Colchester via Braughing. Construction started around AD 50 on the road. Little evidence from the period survives except for excavations showing a section of the road, evidence of a cremation facility and a burial site.{{Cite web|title=Guide 10: Cannons Close|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide10/cannons-close/|access-date=19 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}} None of the excavations has shown evidence of the Roman fort which likely existed in Stortford.{{Cite book|last=Cooper|first=Jacqueline|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/63788286|title=Bishop's Stortford : a history|date=2005|publisher=Phillimore|isbn=1-86077-329-X|location=Chichester, West Sussex, England|pages=6|oclc=63788286}} The settlement was probably abandoned in the 5th century after the break-up of the Roman Empire.Roman Britain [http://roman-britain.co.uk/places/bishops_stortford.htm Retrieved 7 February 2018.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190409085000/http://roman-britain.co.uk/places/bishops_stortford.htm |date=9 April 2019 }}

File:Waytemore Castle, Bishop' s Stortford - geograph.org.uk - 1764727.jpg

Following the end of the Roman era, a new Anglo-Saxon settlement grew up on the site.

However, little is known about Stortford until the 1060s with the evidence becoming much stronger after the Norman Conquest.{{Cite web|title=Welcome|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/welcome/|access-date=19 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}} In 1060 when William, Bishop of London, bought Stortford manor and estate for £8, leading to the town's modern name. By 1086, the motte-and-bailey Waytemore Castle had been built{{Cite web|title=Guide 8: Waytemore Castle|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide8/waytemore_castle.html|access-date=15 October 2024|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}} as a local strongpoint for the area. It acted as a centre for defence and civil administration for roughly 125 years before it was dismantled but not destroyed by King John in 1211. Rebuilding of the castle started the following year at John's expense, and John stayed the night in the castle in 1216.{{Cite book|last=Cooper|first=Jacqueline|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/63788286|title=Bishop's Stortford : a history|date=2005|publisher=Phillimore|isbn=1-86077-329-X|location=Chichester, West Sussex, England|pages=11–21|oclc=63788286}} By the 15th century, the castle had fallen into disrepair, and the Bishop's Court (one of the administrative structures for the area) moved to Hockerill, to the east of the town.

At the time of the Domesday Book in 1086 the village had a population of around 120,{{Cite web|date=14 March 2021|title=A BRIEF HISTORY OF BISHOP'S STORTFORD|url=https://localhistories.org/a-history-of-bishops-stortford/|access-date=19 February 2022|website=Local Histories|language=en-GB}}[https://opendomesday.org/place/TL4921/bishops-stortford/ Bishops Stortford]. Open Domesday. Accessed 28 March 2025. and grew to around 700 by the 13th century.

In terms of governance, early medieval Stortford was part of the Braughing Hundred, but acquired burgesses and between 1306 and 1336 was taxed as a borough. No charter survives however, and civil authority passed to two local manor courts at the Castle and the Rectory.{{Cite book|last=Cooper|first=Jacqueline|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/63788286|title=Bishop's Stortford : a history|date=2005|publisher=Phillimore|isbn=1-86077-329-X|location=Chichester, West Sussex, England|pages=15|oclc=63788286}} Stortford briefly sent two members to parliament in the reigns of Edward II and Edward III, with writs being issued to the town in the 1311–1315, 1318, 1320, 1322 and 1340.{{Cite book|last=MCKISACK|first=MAY|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1258780905|title=PARLIAMENTARY REPRESENTATION OF THE ENGLISH BOROUGHS : during the middle ages.|date=2021|publisher=ROUTLEDGE|isbn=978-0-367-14224-7|location=[S.l.]|oclc=1258780905}}{{Cite web|title=Guide 7: Local Government|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide7/local-government/|access-date=20 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley - A History & Guide}}

At the start of the early modern period in the mid 15th century, Stortford was a primarily agricultural community, but had also acquired a tanning industry. By the 16th century, Stortford had become an important centre of the malting industry. Not only were the local soils well suited for grains, but the fact that the town was just 35 miles to London provided an impetus to its development.{{Cite web|title=Guide 10: Malting Industry|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide10/malting-industry/|access-date=19 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}} The economic draw of the maltings and the town's market supported a large number of inns and public houses by the middle of the 16th century pointing to its prosperity.{{Cite web|title=Guide 10: Public Houses|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide10/public-houses/|access-date=19 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}}

Over the following hundred years, Stortford grew markedly. The population of Stortford reached 1,500 by 1660 as a result of a positive net birth rate and migration to the town.{{Cite book|last=Cooper|first=Jacqueline|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/63788286|title=Bishop's Stortford : a history|date=2005|publisher=Phillimore|isbn=1-86077-329-X|location=Chichester, West Sussex, England|pages=31|oclc=63788286}} This was despite a series of a dozen plagues between the 1560s and 1660s.{{Cite book|last=Cooper|first=Jacqueline|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/63788286|title=Bishop's Stortford : a history|date=2005|publisher=Phillimore|isbn=1-86077-329-X|location=Chichester, West Sussex, England|pages=46|oclc=63788286}} The town also enjoyed a series of royal visits in the 17th century, with Charles I visiting the town in 1625, 1629 and 1642.{{Cite book|last=Cooper|first=Jacqueline|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/63788286|title=Bishop's Stortford : a history|date=2005|publisher=Phillimore|isbn=1-86077-329-X|location=Chichester, West Sussex, England|pages=45–46|oclc=63788286}}

The years following the last of Charles' visits were to prove somewhat turbulent for the town. During the English Civil War Stortford backed the Parliamentarians, with the Manor of Stortford being sequestered from the Bishop of London and sold off for £2,845. It was returned to the Bishop at the Restoration. The Great Plague of 1666–7, and its lasting effects, reduced the population to only around 600 by 1700. The effects of the plague were so severe that the town had to appeal to the Hertfordshire magistrates, who levied a rate on every parish in the county for the relief of Bishop's Stortford, Hoddesdon and Cheshunt.

Despite the demographic impact of the Great Plague, perhaps the turning point in Stortford's fortunes was the creation of the 'Hockerill by-pass' in 1670.{{Cite book|last=Cooper|first=Jacqueline|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/63788286|title=Bishop's Stortford : a history|date=2005|publisher=Phillimore|isbn=1-86077-329-X|location=Chichester, West Sussex, England|pages=47|oclc=63788286}} King Charles II had in the 1660s been increasingly travelling from London to Newmarket for the races and disliked the noise and congestion of Stortford, with its odorous market, maltings and tanneries. Moreover, the route was not always passable as noted by diarist Samuel Pepys who made the following entry in his diary on 23 May 1668: ‘and so to Bishop's Stafford [sic]. The ways mighty full of water so as hardly to be passed’. As a result, the road from London to Newmarket was diverted to the east of the centre of Stortford, and instead ran through the outlying settlement of Hockerill.{{Cite web|title=Guide 12: Hockerill Bypass|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide12/hockerill-bypass/|access-date=19 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}} The inns of Hockerill become an important overnight location for stop overs for overnight coaches to East Anglia.{{Cite book|last=Cooper|first=Jacqueline|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/63788286|title=Bishop's Stortford : a history|date=2005|publisher=Phillimore|isbn=1-86077-329-X|location=Chichester, West Sussex, England|pages=48|oclc=63788286}} Further demands for improved roads led to the creation of the Essex and Hertfordshire Turnpike Trust (later Hockerill Turnpike Trust) in 1744 to repair the road between Harlow Bush Common and Stump Cross in Great Chesterford. Later Acts of Parliament extended the term of the Trust and allowed new road construction.{{Cite book|url=https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/08708653-97a6-4696-a75d-7b4aae87c3bf|title=HOCKERILL (ESSEX and HERTFORDSHIRE) TURNPIKE TRUST|others=Hockerill Turnpike Trust, Hertfordshire|language=English}} From March 1785 the mail coaches ran from London to Norwich via Stortford.{{Cite web|title=Guide 9: Mail Coaches|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide9/mail-coaches/|access-date=20 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}} Thus, the improved highways marked the first of the phases of Stortford's growth driven by emergent transport technology.

The second major transport development to provide a significant boost to the town was the construction of the Stort Navigation, which canalised the River Stort, and opened in 1769. The improvements to the navigation of the Stort were driven by the inability of the malting industry to use the Stort for river transport, which caused significant damage to the local roads and handed a competitive advantage to neighbouring malting areas like Ware who were linked to London by the River Lea. The work on the canal undertaken by George Jackson (later Sir George Duckett) had the added benefit of alleviating the flooding risk in the town.{{Cite web|title=Guide 11: Stort Navigation|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide11/stort-navigation/|access-date=20 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}} File:CornExchange.jpg

With the roads and Stort navigation providing easy access to London markets, industrialisation came to Stortford. The advent of the Stort Navigation brought new industries to the town, with bargemen, lock-keepers, wharfingers, coal and timber merchants all appearing. The malting industry also saw output significantly increase, with brown malt production doubling between 1788 and 1811. Together with national trends in the brewing industry, the 40 malthouses in Stortford in early 1800s Stortford also helped to stimulate the local brewing trade. At the turn of the 19th century, there were 18 brewers in town which in turn boosted the inn trade.{{Cite book|last=Cooper|first=Jacqueline|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/63788286|title=Bishop's Stortford : a history|date=2005|publisher=Phillimore|isbn=1-86077-329-X|location=Chichester, West Sussex, England|pages=58–59|oclc=63788286}} The boom in the town in turn boosted the metal working and bricklaying trades, and also aided the general retail trade. In 1791 there were 30 principal traders according to a contemporary directory.{{Cite book|last=Cooper|first=Jacqueline|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/63788286|title=Bishop's Stortford : a history|date=2005|publisher=Phillimore|isbn=1-86077-329-X|location=Chichester, West Sussex, England|pages=60–61|oclc=63788286}}

The vibrancy of the local economy - especially the agricultural trade sector - was demonstrated in 1828 when a consortium of local businessmen built the Bishop's Stortford Corn Exchange, which provided trading accommodation for 65 dealers.{{Cite web|title=Guide 2: Corn Exchange|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide2/corn-exchange/|access-date=20 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}} By this point, the town directory was listing 200 commercial entries, and 350 by the turn of the century.{{Cite book|last=Cooper|first=Jacqueline|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/63788286|title=Bishop's Stortford : a history|date=2005|publisher=Phillimore|isbn=1-86077-329-X|location=Chichester, West Sussex, England|pages=78|oclc=63788286}}

The third major transport innovation to have a significant impact upon Stortford was the arrival of the railway in 1842. The line initially ran from London Liverpool Street to Stortford, but by 1845 the line was linked to Norwich. The new rail link brought an almost immediate end to the coaching industry, and the Stort Navigation entered terminal decline. The town, though boomed. Massive new residential estates grew up in the New Town (to the south and west of the historic core) and Hockerill (across the river to the east of the historic core) in the decades following the building of the railway.{{Cite web|title=Guide 11: Railway Station|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide11/railway-station/|access-date=20 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}} A Bishop's Stortford–Braintree branch line was built to Braintree to bring goods into Stortford from the surrounding more rural areas, with the first section to Great Dunmow opening in 1864.{{Cite book|last=Gridley|first=David|title=Lost and Found: Journey to a Forgotten Railway|publisher=Slowcoach Publishing|year=2016|isbn=9780956412812|location=London|pages=38}} The single track line struggled to gain traction, and by 1922 had only seven eastbound and six westbound trains per day.{{Cite book|last=David|first=Gridley|title=Lost and Found: Journey to a Forgotten Railway|publisher=Slowcoach Publishing|year=2016|isbn=9780956412812|location=London|pages=93}} The bus service which started between Stortford and Dunmow in 1920{{Cite book|last=David|first=Gridley|title=Lost and Found: Journey to a Forgotten Railway|publisher=Slowcoach Publishing|year=2016|isbn=9780956412812|location=London|pages=95}} contributed to the demise of the line which closed to passengers in 1952 and freight in 1972.{{Cite book|last=Gridley|first=David|title=Lost and Found: Journey to a Forgotten Railway|publisher=Slowcoach Publishing|year=2016|isbn=9780956412812|location=London|pages=140–143}}File:Edward VII driving through Bishops Stortford, October 1905.pngThe mid-19th century onwards also saw the rapid growth in public utilities, public services and governance in the town. The first gas street lights were installed in the town in the 1830s,{{Cite web|title=Guide 6: North Street|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide6/north-street/|access-date=20 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}} in 1855 the New Cemetery was opened,{{Cite web|title=Guide 14: New Cemetery|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide14/new-cemetery/|access-date=20 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}} in the 1870s a sewage farm and an isolation hospital were built,{{Cite web|title=Guide 10: Union Workhouse|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide10/union-workhouse/|access-date=20 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}} while in 1895 the town's first proper hospital was opened.{{Cite web|title=Guide 7: Rye Street|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide7/rye-street/|access-date=20 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}} By 1911, the Encyclopædia Britannica referred to the town as having strong educational pedigree: "The high school, formerly the grammar school, was founded in the time of Elizabeth.... There are a Nonconformist grammar school, a diocesan training college for mistresses, and other educational establishments."{{Cite EB1911|title=Bishop Stortford|wstitle=Bishop Stortford}}

During World War II, Stortford was a reception area for evacuees.{{Cite web |last=R |first=Marsha |title=From Eastbourne to Bishops Stortford |url=https://www.hertsmemories.org.uk/content/herts-history/places/schools/eastbourne-bishops-stortford |access-date=2023-07-26 |website=Herts Memories |language=en}} This did not, however, mean that Stortford was immune from bombings, with 20 bombs recorded as having been dropped in 1940.{{Cite book |last=Gridley |first=David |title=Lost and Found: Journey to a Forgotten Railway |publisher=Slowcoach Publishing |year=2016 |isbn=9780956412812 |pages=114}} Targets included Hockerill Training College where three students were killed on 10 October 1940.{{Cite book |last=Stratton |first=Ruth |title=Bishop's Stortford: A History & Celebration |publisher=Frith Book Company |year=2004 |isbn=1904938108 |pages=94}} The railway station was hit twice during the war and a rocket landed near Farnham Road in the town in 1945.{{Cite book |last=Cooper |first=Jacqueline |title=Bishop's Stortford: A History |publisher=Phillimore |year=2005 |pages=116}}

In the post-war era the town centre underwent changes with the demolition of a multi-storey car park and surrounding area to make way for a new town centre area and city-type apartments and penthouses on the riverside and elsewhere. Jackson Square (a modern shopping complex) was rebuilt and an extension added.

Stortford continued to grow as a commuter town from the second half of the 20th century onwards, spurred by the construction of the M11 motorway and Stansted Airport, as well as rail links to London and Cambridge. This contributed to its rise in population to almost 38,000 at the time of the 2011 census.

Of the seven suburbs of Thorley, Town, Havers, Stortford Fields, Bishop's Park, St Michael's Mead and Snowley the last is a separate ecclesiastical parish east of the River Stort, centred around the old coaching inns, All Saints in Stansted Road and Snowley Parade, bordering Birchanger Woods and Essex. Postwar development has enlarged the town's area further.

{{Historical populations

| title= Population

| percentages = pagr

| align = right

| cols = 2

| graph-pos = bottom

| source = 1801–1961 & 1939 Register [https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10144073/cube/TOT_POP Census via Vision of Britain], 1971–1991 Hertfordshire Populations 1801–1991 (Hertfordshire County Council, undated), 2001–2020 [https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/adhocs/12324parishpopulationestimatesformid2001tomid2019basedonbestfittingofoutputareastoparishes ONS Mid-Year Population Estimates]

| 1801 |2,305

| 1811 |2,630

| 1821 |3,358

| 1831 |3,958

| 1841 |4,681

| 1851 |5,280

| 1861 |5,390

| 1871 |6,250

| 1881 |6,704

| 1891 |6,595

| 1901 |7,143

| 1911 |8,721

| 1921 |8,858

| 1931 |9,510

| 1939 |13,374

| 1951 |12,772

| 1961 |18,342

| 1971 |22,121

| 1981 |22,535

| 1991 |27,874

| 2001 |34,857

| 2011 |37,374

| 2020 |41,088}}

The earliest reliable population figure for Stortford was 120 at the publication of the Domesday Book in 1086. Over the successive centuries the population waxed and waned as a result of economic growth and plagues, and generally only rough population estimates exist. By the time of the first nationwide census in 1801 Stortford's population had reached 2,305{{Cite web|title=Vision Of Britain|url=https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10144073/cube/TOT_POP|access-date=21 February 2022}} spurred by the town's position on the Hockerill Turnpike and the canalisation of the River Stort. Steady growth continued over the coming decades as the railways spurred industrialisation. Population growth averaged 1.12% per annum through to 1911 and the advent of World War I. Inter-war growth averaged 1.54% per annum. Stortford's population exceeded the county town of Hertford in the 1961 census,{{Cite book |title=Hertfordshire Populations 1801–1991 |publisher=Hertfordshire County Council}} even though Stortford's average population growth slowed to 1.39% between World War II and 2020. Sources of population growth have been predominantly natural growth and in-migration, but on a number of occasions the boundaries of Bishop's Stortford parish have been expanded. Most recently this occurred in 1992 when some neighbouring parts of Essex were moved into the town{{Cite web|last=National Archives|date=1992|title=The Essex and Hertfordshire (County Boundaries) Order 1992|url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1992/2119/made|website=legislation.gov.uk}} and in 2018 when homes were moved into Stortford from neighbouring Thorley Parish.{{Cite book|url=http://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/lgbce/Reviews/Eastern/Hertfordshire/CGR/East%20Hertfordshire%20CGR_Redacted.pdf|title=The East Hertfordshire (Reorganisation of Community Governance) (Bishop's Stortford and Thorley) Order 2018|publisher=East Hertfordshire District Council|year=2018}} In 2020 Bishop's Stortford was the largest town in East Hertfordshire.{{Cite web|title=Parish Population estimates for mid-2011 to mid-2020 based on best-fitting of output areas to parishes – Office for National Statistics|url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/adhocs/13843parishpopulationestimatesformid2011tomid2020basedonbestfittingofoutputareastoparishes|access-date=24 February 2022|website=www.ons.gov.uk}}

At the 2011 census, 93.6% of the population of Stortford described themselves as white, which was lower than the 96.2% recorded in the 2001 census.{{Cite web|title=Custom report – Nomis – Official Labour Market Statistics|url=https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/sources/census_2001_ks/report?compare=26UD009|access-date=23 February 2022|website=www.nomisweb.co.uk}} The number of people describing themselves as having a white background in 2011 was significantly higher than the England aggregate of 85.4%, but slightly lower than the overall East Hertfordshire figure.

The proportion of Bishop's Stortford residents reporting having been born in the United Kingdom was 87.8%, and was only slightly higher than the English average of 86.2%. Stortford recorded a significantly higher proportion of European Union-born residents than either East Hertfordshire or England. The number of UK-born residents in 2011 was down from the 92.4% recorded in 2001.

The number of occupied dwellings in Bishop's Stortford rose from 13,733 in 2001 to 14,920. In Stortford 3.0% of properties were recorded as empty in 2011, compared with 4.3% across England. Overall, the dominant type of housing are detached and semi-detached housing, although the proportion of flats has grown from 13.0% in 2001 to 17.6% in 2011. The proportion of flats is well below the English average of 22.1%

Home ownership is high in Bishop's Stortford at 72.3% of households, which is above both the East Hertfordshire and English averages. The proportion of properties available for social rent has risen from 9.8% in 2001 to 10.1% in 2011.

Stortford has three tiers of local government at parish (town), district, and county level: Bishop's Stortford Town Council, East Hertfordshire District Council, and Hertfordshire County Council.

{{Infobox former subdivision

| Name = Bishop's Stortford

| subdivision_type = Local Government District (1866{{ndash}}1894)
Urban District (1894{{ndash}}1974)

| HQ = Bishop's Stortford

| Start = 25 December 1866

| End = 31 March 1974

| Replace = East Hertfordshire

| arms_image = File:Bishop's_Stortford_town_council_coat_of_arms.jpg

| membership_title1 = County Council

| membership1 = Hertfordshire

| PopulationFirst = 6,595{{cite web |title=Bishop's Stortford Urban Sanitary District |url=https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10003635 |website=A Vision of Britain through Time |publisher=GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth |access-date=13 December 2021}}

| PopulationLast = 21,000{{cite web |url=https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10144073 |title=Bishop's Stortford Urban District, A Vision of Britain through Time |publisher=GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth |access-date=13 December 2021}}

| PopulationFirstYear = 1891

| PopulationLastYear = 1971

}}

Historically, Stortford was administered by its parish vestry, in the same way as most small towns and rural areas; no borough corporation was established for the town, despite some limited moves in that direction in the fourteenth century.{{cite book |last1=Page |first1=William |title=A History of the County of Hertford, Volume 3 |date=1912 |publisher=Victoria County History |location=London |pages=292–306 |url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/herts/vol3/pp292-306 |access-date=13 December 2021}} Bishop's Stortford was included in the hundred of Braughing. The Bishop's Stortford Poor Law Union was established in 1835, covering the town and surrounding parishes in both Hertfordshire and Essex.{{cite web |last1=Higginbotham |first1=Peter |title=Bishop's Stortford Poor Law Union |url=http://www.workhouses.org.uk/BishopsStortford/ |website=The Workhouse |access-date=13 December 2021}}

On 25 October 1866 a public meeting at the town's corn exchange voted to establish a local board, the Bishop's Stortford Local Board. The parish of Bishop's Stortford was declared to be a local government district with effect from 25 December 1866, and the local board held its first meeting at the corn exchange on 23 February 1867. Jones Gifford Nash was chosen as the first chairman of the local board.Bishop Stortford: The Local Board, Hertford Mercury, 23 February 1867, page 3 The Local Board later established offices at 7 North Street.The Local Government Act at Bishop Stortford, Essex Herald (Chelmsford), 30 October 1866, page 5{{cite journal |title=Local Government Act, 1858: Notice of adoption of Act by Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire |journal=London Gazette |date=7 December 1866 |issue=23195 |page=6835 |url=https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/23195/page/6835 |access-date=13 December 2021}}{{cite web |title=Bishop's Stortford Local Board Minutes |url=https://archives.hertfordshire.gov.uk/collections/getrecord/GB46_CLBH_2_1_1_1?doing_wp_cron=1639339604.2642760276794433593750 |website=Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies |publisher=Hertfordshire County Council |access-date=14 December 2021}}

Under the Local Government Act 1894, the Bishop's Stortford Local Board was replaced by the Bishop's Stortford Urban District Council in 1894.{{cite web|url=https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10144073|title=Bishops Stortford UD|publisher=Vision of Britain|access-date=27 May 2023}} The new council held its first meeting on 5 January 1895. The last chairman of the local board, John Slater, was appointed the first chairman of the urban district council.Bishop Stortford: Urban District Council, Essex Herald (Chelmsford), 8 January 1895, page 5 The council continued to be based at 7 North Street until the First World War.{{cite book |title=Kelly's Directory of Hertfordshire |date=1914 |location=London |page=62 |url=http://specialcollections.le.ac.uk/digital/collection/p16445coll4/id/59241 |access-date=13 December 2021}} In 1914 the council bought a large old house called Wharf House at 4 The Causeway.Bishop Stortford, Herts and Cambs Reporter and Royston Crow, 4 September 1914, page 8 The house had been built by George Jackson, who had also built the adjoining Stort Navigation. Wharf House was renamed the Council House, and served as the council's offices until October 1972, when the council moved to purpose-built offices at 1 The Causeway. The Council House was demolished shortly afterwards to make way for the Jackson Square shopping centre.Council's New Offices Opened, Herts and Essex Observer (Bishop's Stortford), 3 November 1972, page 1Jackson Square, Herts and Essex Observer (Bishop's Stortford), 31 May 1974, page 10

File:East Herts District Council Offices - geograph.org.uk - 140667.jpg

Bishop's Stortford Urban District Council was granted a coat of arms on 20 August 1952.{{cite web |title=Bishop's Stortford Town Council |url=http://www.civicheraldry.co.uk/east_of_england.html |website=Civic Heraldry |access-date=13 December 2021}}

File:Riverside House, 2 Hockerill Street, Bishop's Stortford.jpg

Bishop's Stortford Urban District was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972, becoming part of East Hertfordshire on 1 April 1974. Bishop's Stortford Town Council was established as a successor parish to the old urban district.{{cite book |title=The Local Government (Successor Parishes) (No. 2) Order 1973 |date=1973 |publisher=Her Majesty's Stationery Office |location=London |isbn=0110319397 |page=6688 |url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1973/1939/pdfs/uksi_19731939_en.pdf |access-date=14 December 2021}} The former urban district council's offices at 1 The Causeway were taken over by East Hertfordshire District Council, whilst the new town council was based at the former offices of the Braughing Rural District Council at 2 Hockerill Street. The town council moved to the Old Monastery on Windhill in 1994.{{cite web |title=The Old Monastery |url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide4/the-monastry/ |website=Bishop's Stortford and Thorley: A history and guide |access-date=14 December 2021}} East Hertfordshire District Council vacated 1 The Causeway in 2013, having consolidated most of its functions at its main offices in Hertford. The district council set up a smaller Bishop's Stortford office in Charringtons House, adjoining 1 The Causeway. The vacated office at 1 The Causeway was demolished in 2017.{{cite web |title=Executive minutes, 7 June 2016 |url=http://democracy.eastherts.gov.uk/ieDecisionDetails.aspx?AIId=16025&J=1 |website=East Hertfordshire District Council |date = 7 June 2016|access-date=14 December 2021 |quote=1 The Causeway, Bishop's Stortford redevelopment}}

{{See also|Hertford and Stortford (UK Parliament constituency)}}

Bishop's Stortford is the largest town within the Hertford and Stortford County Constituency for elections to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. The constituency covers Stortford, Hertford, Ware, Sawbridgeworth and the surrounding rural areas.{{Cite web |title=Election Maps |url=https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/election-maps/gb/ |access-date=2022-11-27 |website=www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk}}

For elections to East Herts District Council, Bishop's Stortford has been divided into six wards since the May 2023 local elections wards: All Saints, Central, North, Parsonage, South and Thorley Manor. Bishop's Stortford residents elect 14 of the 50 councillors on East Herts Council. For elections to Bishop's Stortford Town Council, the town is split into nine wards: All Saints, Central, Chantry, Parsonage, Silverleys, South, Thorley Manor North, Thorley Manor South and Waterside.{{Cite book |url=https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/lgbce/Reviews/Eastern/Hertfordshire/East%20Herts/Final/East%20Herts%20Final%20Recommendations%20Report.pdf |title=New electoral arrangements for East Herts District Council Final Recommendations |publisher=The Local Government Boundary Commission For England |date=August 2022}}

For elections to Hertfordshire County Council, out of the 78 electoral divisions in total, three divisions cover Bishop's Stortford: Bishop's Stortford East (comprising the areas covered by the All Saints, Parsonage and Chantry Town Council Wards), Bishop's Stortford Rural (the South, Thorley Manor South Town Council Wards together with the Little Hadham and Much Hadham East Herts District Council Wards) and Bishop's Stortford West (the Central, Silverleys, Thorley Manor North and Waterside Town Council Wards).

After 46 years of being twinned with the German town of Friedberg and Villiers-sur-Marne in France, the town council ended links in 2011.{{Cite news |title=Bishop's Stortford dumps its twin towns in France and Germany |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2011/dec/01/bishops-stortford-dumps-twin-towns |access-date=2023-02-04 |newspaper=The Guardian|date=December 2011 |last1=Harding |first1=Luke }}

Stortford is a prosperous town. The key drivers of its growth according to the Town Wide Employment Study for Bishop's Stortford are "Stansted Airport, an excellent rail service into central London and good road links via the M11 to London, the M25 northern sub-region and Cambridge. Stortford is well positioned in relation to the UK's most dynamic economies."{{Cite book|url=https://cdn-eastherts.onwebcurl.com/s3fs-public/documents/Townwide_Employment_Study_joined.pdf|title=Town Wide Employment Study For Bishop's Stortford|publisher=Wessex Economics|year=2013|pages=3}} This study also highlights Stortford's skilled population, as well as the importance of "quality of life" as an important economic asset. In addition to East Hertfordshire topping the Halifax Quality of Life survey in 2020,{{Cite web|date=31 January 2020|title=It's official: Stortford is in the district voted the UK's best place to live|url=https://www.bishopsstortfordindependent.co.uk/news/its-official-stortford-is-in-the-district-voted-the-uk-s-best-place-to-live-9098176/|access-date=24 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford Independent|language=en}} Stortford has been highlighted as a popular commuter town in articles in The Times,{{Cite news |last=Times |first=The Sunday |title=Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire — Best Places to Live in the UK 2020 |newspaper=The Times |language=en |url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/bishop-s-stortford-hertfordshire-best-places-to-live-in-the-uk-2020-3ph7gtbpb |access-date=2022-11-22 |issn=0140-0460}} The Evening Standard,{{Cite web|last=Bloomfield|first=Ruth|date=17 April 2019|title=Why these are three of the best towns for London commuters to buy in|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/homesandproperty/property-news/commuter-towns-in-hertfordshire-home-county-s-quick-commutes-and-buzzing-social-scene-draw-homebuyers-leaving-london-a129261.html|access-date=24 February 2022|website=www.standard.co.uk|language=en}} and the Metro newspaper London.{{Cite web |last=Andrea Dean |date=2022-11-22 |title=Bishop's Stortford could be good for first-time buyers with quick links to Londo |url=https://metro.co.uk/2022/11/22/bishops-stortford-could-be-good-for-first-time-buyers-with-london-links-17801182/ |access-date=2022-11-22 |website=Metro |language=en}}

Like the UK as a whole, Stortford has a highly service-based economy. In the 2011 census, 84.5% of Stortford residents in employment stated that they worked in a service industry, which was higher than East Hertfordshire (81.2%) and England (81.2%). Of particular note is that 7.9% of local workers are employed in Transportation and Storage which is well above the English average of 5.0%. The most significant employer in this industry is Stansted Airport, which was estimated in 2013 to employ at least 1,000 people who live in Stortford.{{Cite book|url=https://cdn-eastherts.onwebcurl.com/s3fs-public/documents/Townwide_Employment_Study_joined.pdf|title=Town Wide Employment Study for Bishop's Stortford|publisher=Wessex Economics|year=2013|pages=5}}

Commuters represent a sizeable proportion of the local working age population. The Town Wide Employment Study estimated in 2013 around 3,000 people (round 15% of those in employment) commute from Stortford by rail, with the largest proportion "in all probability" travelling into Central London.{{Cite book|url=https://cdn-eastherts.onwebcurl.com/s3fs-public/documents/Townwide_Employment_Study_joined.pdf|title=Town Wide Employment Study For Bishop's Stortford|publisher=Wessex Economics|year=2013|pages=11}} This is reflected in Stortford in the 2011 census having a much higher proportion of workers in managerial and professional occupations than the national average, as shown in the table below.

Stortford itself has a strong internal economy, with an estimated 16,985 people employed within the town boundaries.{{Cite web|title=Business Register and Employment Survey : open access – Nomis – Official Labour Market Statistics|url=https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/datasets/newbres6pub|access-date=24 February 2022|website=www.nomisweb.co.uk}} There are 329 businesses established in the town centre (as of 2018){{Cite web|title=Business Improvement District for Bishop's Stortford {{!}} East Herts District Council|url=https://www.eastherts.gov.uk/elections-voting/previous-years-results/business-improvement-district-bishops-stortford|access-date=24 February 2022|website=www.eastherts.gov.uk}} represented by the Bishop's Stortford Business Improvement District (BID).{{Cite web|title=About|url=https://bishopsstortfordbid.co.uk/about/|access-date=24 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford BID|language=en-GB}} There is also a Bishop's Stortford Chamber of Commerce.{{Cite web|title=The Bishop's Stortford Chamber of Commerce|url=https://bschamber.org/|access-date=24 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford Chamber of Commerce|language=en-GB}}

Stortford is considered the Principal Town Centre in East Hertfordshire by East Hertfordshire District Council's District Plan, serving as a destination for visitors from beyond the town.{{Cite book|url=https://cdn-eastherts.onwebcurl.com/s3fs-public/documents/District_Plan_Publish_web_view.pdf|title=East Herts District Plan|publisher=East Hertfordshire District Plan|year=2018|pages=48}} There is both an indoor shopping centre, Jackson Square,{{Cite web|title=Homepage|url=https://www.jacksonsquareshopping.co.uk/|access-date=24 February 2022|website=Jackson Square Shopping Centre|language=en-GB}} and a traditional high street running along the axis of South Street, Potter Street and North Street, as well as the adjoining streets.{{Cite book|url=https://www.bishopsstortfordtc.gov.uk/sites/default/files/basic_pages/Bishops%20Stortford%20Town%20Centre%20Planning%20Framework.pdf|title=Bishop's Stortford Town Centre Planning Framework|publisher=Allies and Morrison/East Hertfordshire District Council|year=2017}} The town has a twice weekly market and a monthly farmers market run by Bishop's Stortford Town Council.{{Cite web|title=Market {{!}} Bishop's Stortford Town Council and Tourist Information|url=https://www.bishopsstortfordtc.gov.uk/market|access-date=24 February 2022|website=www.bishopsstortfordtc.gov.uk}}

The Bishop's Stortford Independent newspaper covers Stortford, along with the neighbouring towns of Sawbridgeworth and Stansted Mountfitchet.{{Cite web |title=Bishop's Stortford Independent |url=https://www.bishopsstortfordindependent.co.uk/news/}} The newspaper was founded in October 2017{{Cite web |title=Iliffe Media launches Bishop's Stortford Independent newspaper – Journalism News from HoldtheFrontPage |url=https://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/2017/news/redundant-editor-bounces-back-to-launch-weekly-on-former-patch/ |access-date=2022-12-04 |website=HoldtheFrontPage |language=en-GB}} following the closure of the Stortford office of the Herts and Essex Observer newspaper in 2016.{{Cite web |title=Herts & Essex Observer's Bishop's Stortford office to close – Journalism News from HoldtheFrontPage |url=https://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/2016/news/newspaper-set-to-lose-office-weeks-after-editor-made-redundant/ |access-date=2022-12-04 |website=HoldtheFrontPage |language=en-GB}}

The town is also covered by a number of print magazines including the Bishop's Stortford Flyer,{{Cite web |title=Bishop's Stortford Flyer |url=https://www.flyeronline.co.uk/bishops-stortford/}} CM23 Connection,{{Cite web |title=The CM Connection |url=https://www.cmconnection.uk/}} Axis Magazine,{{Cite web |title=Axis Magazine |url=http://www.axismagazine.co.uk/ |access-date=2022-12-04 |website=www.axismagazine.co.uk |language=en-GB}} and The BISH.{{Cite web |title=thebishmag.co.uk {{!}} Bishop's Stortford and beyond |url=https://thebishmag.co.uk/ |access-date=2022-12-04 |language=en-US}}

Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC London and ITV London. Television signals are received from either the Crystal Palace{{cite web | url=https://ukfree.tv/transmitters/tv/Crystal_Palace | title=Crystal Palace (Greater London, England) Full Freeview transmitter | date=May 2004 }} or the local relay transmitters.{{cite web | url=https://ukfree.tv/transmitters/tv/Bishops_Stortford | title=Bishops Stortford (Hertfordshire, England) Freeview Light transmitter | date=May 2004 }} BBC East and ITV Anglia can also be received from the Sandy Heath TV transmitter.

{{cite web | url=https://ukfree.tv/transmitters/tv/Sandy_Heath | title=Sandy Heath (Central Bedfordshire, England) Full Freeview transmitter | date=May 2004 }}

Local radio stations are BBC Three Counties Radio{{Cite web |title=Three Counties Radio – Listen Live – BBC Sounds |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/live:bbc_three_counties_radio |access-date=2022-12-04 |website=BBC |language=en-GB}} and Heart Hertfordshire.

File:Bishop's Stortford Station.jpg

Bishop's Stortford railway station is a stop on the West Anglia Main Line and was first opened in 1842. There were 2.00 million passenger entries and exits in 2020/21.{{Cite web |title=Estimates of station usage {{!}} ORR Data Portal |url=https://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/statistics/usage/estimates-of-station-usage |access-date=2022-11-28 |website=dataportal.orr.gov.uk}}

The station is served by three routes, all operated by Greater Anglia:{{Cite web |work=Greater Anglia |title=Timetables |date=10 December 2023 |access-date=20 December 2023 |url= https://www.greateranglia.co.uk/timetables |quote=}}

• A fast {{rws|Stansted Airport}} to {{rws|London Liverpool Street}} service, stopping only at {{rws|Tottenham Hale}}.
• {{rws|Cambridge North}} to Liverpool Street, via {{rws|Harlow Town}}, Tottenham Hale and at most intermediate stations.
• A direct service to Stratford in East London, which calls at most intermediate stations.

Epping tube station on the London Underground Central line is about 10 miles away from Stortford; the line provides a stopping service through Central London to {{rws|Ealing Broadway}} in the west.

The M11 motorway passes to the east of Bishop's Stortford. Junction 8 links the motorway to the town and the M11 carries traffic directly to Cambridge, Harlow and London. As the road passes the town, Bishop's Stortford falls in the M11 corridor for innovation.{{Cite web |url=https://innovationcorridor.uk/about|title=Innovation Corridor {{!}} About |website=Innovation Corridor |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190417135925/https://innovationcorridor.uk/about |archive-date=17 April 2019 }}

The A120 runs east–west along the northern edge of the town. To the west, the A120 meets the A10 at Puckeridge (for Hertford or Royston). To the east, the A120 passes Stansted Airport en route to Braintree, Colchester, the A12 and Harwich.

Other key routes in the town include:

• A1060 to the Hatfield Heath, the Rodings and Chelmsford
• A1184 to Sawbridgeworth and Harlow
• A1250 east–west route through the town centre
• B1383 to Stansted Mountfitchet and Saffron Walden

East Hertfordshire District Council monitors nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) levels at Hockerill Junction in the town centre.{{Cite web |url=https://www.eastherts.gov.uk/airquality |title=East Herts District Council {{!}} Air Quality |website=East Hertfordshire District Council|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420143514/https://www.eastherts.gov.uk/airquality |archive-date=20 April 2019 |access-date=20 April 2019}} There are four diffusion tubes around the junction for air quality monitoring. In 2017, three out of four tubes failed to meet the UK National Objective of 40μg/m³ (micrograms per cubic metre):{{Cite web |url=https://www.eastherts.gov.uk/media/33524/2018-Air-Quality-Annual-Status-Report-for-East-Herts---Latest-Analysis/PDF/2018_Air_Quality_Annual_Status_Report_for_East_Herts_-_Latest_Analysis.pdf |title=2018 Air Quality Annual Status for East Herts |website=East Hertfordshire District Council |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420143435/https://www.eastherts.gov.uk/media/33524/2018-Air-Quality-Annual-Status-Report-for-East-Herts---Latest-Analysis/PDF/2018_Air_Quality_Annual_Status_Report_for_East_Herts_-_Latest_Analysis.pdf |archive-date=20 April 2019 }}

Stansted Airport is located to the east of the town, with rail and bus links to Stortford; it serves over 200 destinations globally."[https://www.stanstedairport.com/about-us/london-stansted-airport-and-mag/facts-and-figures/ Facts and figures]". Stansted Airport Retrieved 17 April 2019.

The town is on the Arriva Herts & Essex bus network. Buses 309, 508, 509 and 510 connect the town to Stansted Airport. Local route 511 connects Thorley Park and St James' Park with Bishop's Park via the train station. Buses 508, 509 and 510 all terminate to the south in Harlow.{{Cite web|title=Stops in Bishop's Stortford |url=https://bustimes.org/localities/bishops-stortford |website=Bustimes.org |access-date=20 December 2023}}

Central Connect, operated by Vectare, also serve the town. Key routes include the 35 to Hertford and the 36 to Stevenage, via Letchworth. There are further routes to rural destinations in Hertfordshire and Essex.{{Cite web |url=https://www.intalink.org.uk/download/22440.6/bishops-stortford/ |title=Intalink Town Maps {{!}} Bishop's Stortford |website=Intalink |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420144109/https://www.intalink.org.uk/download/22440.6/bishops-stortford/ |archive-date=20 April 2019 }}{{Cite web |url=https://www.intalink.org.uk/download/22386/hertfordshire-county-map/ |title=Intalink Network Maps {{!}} Hertfordshire County Map |website=Intalink|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420144211/https://www.intalink.org.uk/download/22386/hertfordshire-county-map/|archive-date=20 April 2019 }}

Stortford is served by the following cycle routes on regional networks and the National Cycle Network:

• National Cycle Route 11 is an incomplete cycle route which will run through the town centre. Completed sections of the route currently pass through Harlow, Sawbridgeworth, Stansted Mountfitchet and Cambridge. The section between Sawbridgeworth and Stortford is in development but, when completed, the route will provide a direct, non-stop connection from Stortford to the Lea Valley (southbound) and King's Lynn (northbound).{{Cite web |url=https://www.sustrans.org.uk/ncn/map/route/route-11 |title=Sustrans {{!}} Route 11 |website=Sustrans |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420163428/https://www.sustrans.org.uk/ncn/map/route/route-11 |archive-date=20 April 2019 |access-date=20 April 2019}}{{Cite web |url=https://www.sustrans.org.uk/map-ncn |title=Sustrans {{!}} Map of the National Cycle Network

|website=Sustrans |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403074924/https://www.sustrans.org.uk/map-ncn |archive-date=3 April 2019 }}

• National Cycle Route 16 passes just to the northeast of Stortford. The route is segregated from traffic, running non-stop to Great Dunmow. The route continues east on on-road and off-road routes to Braintree and Witham.{{Cite web |url=https://www.sustrans.org.uk/ncn/map/route/route-16 |title=Sustrans {{!}} Route 16 |website=Sustrans |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420163659/https://www.sustrans.org.uk/ncn/map/route/route-16 |archive-date=20 April 2019 |access-date=20 April 2019}}

• The Bishop's Stortford Circular Ride is a recreational cycle route on country lanes to the north of the town. The route begins and ends on Northgate End in the town centre; it passes through Patmore Heath, Stocking Pelham, Brent Pelham, Little Hormead, Braughing and Albury.{{Cite web |url=https://www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/media-library/documents/environment-and-planning/countryside-management-service/walking-and-cycling-routes/a-map-of-hertfordshires-cycle-routes.pdf |title=Hertfordshire Cycling Map for Recreation and Community |website=Hertfordshire County Council |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420163822/https://www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/media-library/documents/environment-and-planning/countryside-management-service/walking-and-cycling-routes/a-map-of-hertfordshires-cycle-routes.pdf |archive-date=20 April 2019 |access-date=20 April 2019}}

• The River Stort towpath is a shared-use path which begins in Stortford. Running parallel to the river, the path links the town directly to Sawbridgeworth and Harlow; it eventually reaches the River Lea towpath towards Hertford, or Tottenham and London's East End. Parts of the towpath carry NCR 11. The route is maintained by the Canal and River Trust.{{Cite web |url=https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/cycling |title=Cycling |website=Canal and River Trust |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190407001538/https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/cycling |archive-date=7 April 2019 }}{{Cite web |url=https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/canal-and-river-network/river-stort |title=River Stort |website=Canal and River Trust |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190420164141/https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/enjoy-the-waterways/canal-and-river-network/river-stort |archive-date=20 April 2019 }}

The historic core of Stortford is covered by a Conservation Area, which roughly aligns with the boundaries of the town in 1874–1894.{{Cite book |url=https://cdn-eastherts.onwebcurl.com/s3fs-public/documents/Bishops_Stortford_Plan_1.pdf |title=Bishop's Stortford Conservative Area Appraisal and Management Plan (Plan 1) |publisher=East Herts District Council |date=December 2014}} As of the last formal Appraisal of the Conservation Area in 2014, there were 105 listed buildings in Stortford, including 71 within the Conservation Area. Two of the buildings are Grade 1 listed: Waytemore Castle and St Michael's Church.[https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide4/stmichaels_church.html St Michael's Church]. Bishop's Stortford Tourist Information Centre. Accessed 28 March 2025. Grade II* listed buildings include 10 Bridge Street (the Black Lion pub), 30 High Street (the Boar's Head restaurant) and 8–10 High Street. Much of the Conservation Area is also an Area of Archaeological Significance.{{Cite book |url=https://cdn-eastherts.onwebcurl.com/s3fs-public/documents/Bishops_Stortford_Conservation_Area_Appraisal_updated.pdf |title=Bishop's Stortford Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan |publisher=East Herts District Council |date=December 2014 |pages=13–16}}

{{Main|Waytemore Castle}}

Waytemore began as a motte and bailey castle in the time of William the Conqueror. A rectangular great tower was added to the motte in the 12th century. It was improved in the 13th century under King John and a licence for crenellation was granted in the mid-14th century. It lost significance after the Civil War and was used as a prison in the 17th century.

Only earthworks, the large motte, and the foundations of a square tower can now be seen.

{{Main|Corn Exchange, Bishop's Stortford}}

Bishop's Stortford Corn Exchange is a Greek Revival style building completed in 1828. The use of the building as a corn exchange declined significantly in the wake of the Great Depression of British Agriculture in the late 19th century. It initially became a meeting venue, and is currently used by commercial and leisure businesses.

{{Main|All Saints' Church, Hockerill}}

In 1935 All Saints' Church, Hockerill was destroyed by fire, and in 1937 a new church, to a spacious, light, and airy design by the architect Stephen Dykes Bower, was erected in its place. This is a Grade II listed building and the tower dominates the eastern skyline of the town. The church contains a notable rose window designed by Hugh Ray Easton and a two-manual Henry Willis II organ. Concerts are also held there.

File:CecilRhodes.jpg{{Main|List of people from Bishop's Stortford}}

• Cecil Rhodes, (1853–1902), the son of the vicar of St Michael's Church, was the founder of the region of Rhodesia (now Zambia and Zimbabwe), and of the De Beers diamond company and the Rhodes Scholarship.{{Cite web|title=Guide 13: Cecil Rhodes|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide13/cecil-rhodes-2/|access-date=21 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}}
• Sir Walter Gilbey, 1st Baronet, businessman, wine merchant and philanthropist.{{Cite web|title=Guide 2: Sir Walter Gilbey|url=https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide2/sir-walter-gilbey/|access-date=21 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide}}
• Caroline Spelman, Conservative MP and former cabinet minister, was born in Bishop's Stortford and attended the Hertfordshire and Essex High School.{{Cite web|date=9 September 2019|title=Herts and Essex old girl Dame Caroline Spelman to quit as MP over Brexit abuse|url=https://www.bishopsstortfordindependent.co.uk/news/herts-and-essex-old-girl-dame-caroline-spelman-to-quit-as-mp-over-brexit-abuse-9082346/|access-date=21 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford Independent|language=en}}
• Paul Epworth (born 1974), Grammy, BRIT Award and Academy Award (Oscar)-winning record producer.

Stortford schools regularly appear in rankings of the best schools in the country, with Hockerill Anglo-European College, The Hertfordshire and Essex High School, and The Bishop's Stortford High School frequently being top performers in The Sunday Times Schools Guide.{{Cite web|date=7 December 2020|title=Four local schools ranked in top 500 in the country in Sunday Times Schools Guide|url=https://www.bishopsstortfordindependent.co.uk/news/four-local-schools-ranked-in-top-500-in-the-country-in-sunday-times-schools-guide-9144173/|access-date=25 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford Independent|language=en}}{{Cite web|last=Clugston|first=Harriet|date=29 November 2017|title=Bishop's Stortford school comes top in Sunday Times school rankings|url=http://www.hertfordshiremercury.co.uk/news/hertfordshire-news/bishops-stortford-school-comes-top-848505|access-date=25 February 2022|website=HertsLive|language=en}} Hertfordshire County Council is the education authority for the state schools in Bishop's Stortford, and is responsible for admissions.{{Cite web|title=Schools and education|url=https://www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/services/schools-and-education/schools-and-education.aspx|access-date=25 February 2022|website=www.hertfordshire.gov.uk|language=en-GB}}

All of the state primary schools in Stortford have nurseries attached, while all of the state secondaries have sixth forms.{{Cite web|title=School directory|url=https://www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/services/schools-and-education/schools-directory/school-directory.aspx|access-date=25 February 2022|website=www.hertfordshire.gov.uk|language=en-GB}} Bishop's Stortford High School{{cite web|title=Bishop's Stortford High School Website|url=http://www.tbshs.herts.sch.uk|access-date=24 September 2016}} and Herts and Essex High School{{cite web|title=Herts and Essex High School Website|url=http://www.hertsandessex.herts.sch.uk/|access-date=24 September 2016}} are a single sex boys and girls school, respectively, from years 7–11 but both have mixed-sex sixth forms. There is also an independent school, the Bishop's Stortford College, which covers ages 4 to 18.{{Cite web|title=Bishop's Stortford College {{!}} Independent Pre-Prep, Prep School, Senior School & Sixth Form in Herts|url=https://www.bishopsstortfordcollege.org/|access-date=25 February 2022|website=www.bishopsstortfordcollege.org}}

There are no further education or higher educational institutions in Stortford. However, nearby educational options include Stansted Airport College,{{Cite web|title=Stansted Airport College – Home|url=http://www.stanstedairportcollege.ac.uk/|access-date=25 February 2022|website=www.stanstedairportcollege.ac.uk}} Harlow College,{{Cite web|title=Harlow College – Home|url=https://www.harlow-college.ac.uk/|access-date=25 February 2022|website=www.harlow-college.ac.uk}} Hertford Regional College,{{Cite web|title=Hertford Regional College|url=https://www.hrc.ac.uk/|access-date=25 February 2022|website=Hertford Regional College|language=en-gb}} and Cambridge Regional College.{{Cite web|title=Cambridge Regional College – Cambridge I Huntingdon|url=https://www.camre.ac.uk/|access-date=25 February 2022|website=Cambridge Regional College|language=en-US}}

The town previously had a boys' grammar school, Bishop's Stortford Grammar School, later Bishop's Stortford School.{{cite magazine | magazine=The Bookman | title=From "Bishop's Stortford and its Story", by Annie Berlyn (Jarrolds)|publisher=Hodder and Stoughton | volume=68-69 | year=1925 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sIceAQAAMAAJ | access-date=13 February 2025}}{{cite book | last1=Turner | first1=Sarah | last2=Clare | first2=David| last3=Downing | first3=Carolyn| title=Bishop's Stortford in the First World War | publisher=Amberley Publishing | year=2014 | isbn=978-1-4456-3281-0 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nCZmBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT36 | access-date=13 February 2025 | page=36}} This was founded in the sixteenth century.{{cite book | last=Jones | first=Arthur| title=Hertfordshire 1731-1800 as Recorded in the Gentleman's Magazine | publisher=Hertfordshire Publications | year=1993 | isbn=978-0-901354-73-0 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_hkA87TVeW4C&pg=PA120 | access-date=13 February 2025 | page=120}} Pupils included Francis Barber, the Jamaican manservant of Samuel Johnson, in the eighteenth century, and Cecil Rhodes, the mining magnate and politician, in the nineteenth century.{{cite book | last=Gerzina | first=Gretchen | title=Black England: A Forgotten Georgian History | publisher=John Murray Press | year=2022 | isbn=978-1-3998-0491-2 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z7SAEAAAQBAJ | quote=at the surprising age of about twenty-two, he was sent to the prestigious Bishop Stortford's Grammar School ... probably in 1767| access-date=13 February 2025 | pages=50–52}} One of the headteachers was the seventeenth-century grammarian Christopher Cooper.{{cite book | editor-last=Brown | editor-first=K. | last=MacMahon|first =MKC|chapter=Cooper, Christopher (?1655-1698)|title=Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics | publisher=Elsevier Science | issue=v. 1-14 | year=2005 | isbn=978-0-08-054784-8 | chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cxYGQfiD_1oC&pg=PT4343 | access-date=13 February 2025 | page=4343}}

Semi-professional football team Bishop's Stortford F.C. were formed in 1874 and play at Woodside Park in the town; the stadium lies on a county boundary and is in both Hertfordshire and Essex. They are currently members of the Southern League Premier Division Central, the seventh tier of the English football pyramid. The club have won two national titles: the 1973–74 FA Amateur Cup and the 1980-81 FA Trophy, becoming the first club to win both competitions.{{cite news |last1=Stephens |first1=Gareth |last2=Lamb |first2=Tim |date=18 September 2007 |title=Your team A-Z > Bishop's Stortford FC |publisher=BBC London |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/london/content/articles/2007/09/18/nl_bishops_feature.shtml |access-date=4 October 2016}} Bishop's Stortford Community Football Club are one of the largest clubs of their type in the country, with over 80 teams and nearly 1,000 members, as of the 2020–21 season.{{Cite web |date=25 April 2020 |title=BSCFC History |url=https://www.bscfc.co.uk/bscfc-history/ |access-date=21 February 2022 |website=BSCFC Official Website |language=en}}

Bishop's Stortford Hockey Club was formed in 1948 and is based at The Hertfordshire and Essex High School, with a clubhouse and state of the art pitch.{{Cite web |date=3 August 2019 |title=New Herts and Essex High School sports complex will be pitch perfect for hockey club |url=https://www.bishopsstortfordindependent.co.uk/sport/new-herts-and-essex-high-school-sports-complex-will-be-pitch-perfect-for-hockey-club-9078342/ |access-date=30 August 2022 |website=Bishop's Stortford Independent |language=en}} They have fourteen senior sides: six men's and eight ladies'{{Cite web |title=Welcome to Stortford Hockey Club |url=https://www.stortfordhockey.co.uk/ |access-date=2023-01-08 |website=Bishop's Stortford Hockey Club |language=en-GB}} playing in the East Hockey Leagues.{{Cite web |title=East Hockey Home |url=https://east.englandhockey.co.uk/ |access-date=2022-08-30 |website=east.englandhockey.co.uk |language=en}} The Men's 1st XI play in the East Men's Division 1 South and the Ladies' 1st XI play in the Vitality Women's Conference East.{{Cite web |title=Competitions {{!}} East Hockey |url=https://east.englandhockey.co.uk/competitions |access-date=2023-01-10 |website=east.englandhockey.co.uk |language=en}} – along with a thriving junior section with over 500 members.

The club has a number of current and former international players still involved with coaching or playing, including Rob Clift (gold medallist), Bernie Cotton, Pippa Bull, Vernon Brown and Ronnie Stott, in addition to a number of senior members who still represent their country at Masters level.{{Cite web |title=Masters |url=https://www.stortfordhockey.co.uk/senior-section/masters/ |access-date=2022-09-01 |website=Bishop's Stortford Hockey Club |language=en-GB}}

Bishop's Stortford Cricket Club play their home matches at Cricket Field Lane, which is also a home venue for Hertfordshire County Cricket Club.{{Cite web |title=StackPath |url=https://www.bishopsstortfordcc.com/ |access-date=21 February 2022 |website=www.bishopsstortfordcc.com}} Thorley Cricket Club play in Bishop's Stortford and, as of 2021, had 40 adult members and over 100 children in their summer coaching programme.{{Cite book |title=Bishop's Stortford Town Council Agenda 20 November 2021 |publisher=Bishop's Stortford Town Council |pages=571}} Hockerill Cricket Club play at their ground on Beldams Lane{{Cite web |title=Hockerill Cricket Club {{!}} Bishop's Stortford Town Council and Tourist Information |url=https://www.bishopsstortfordtc.gov.uk/clubs-and-societies/hockerill-cricket-club |access-date=21 February 2022 |website=www.bishopsstortfordtc.gov.uk}} which they share with Bishop's Stortford Running Club. BSRC supports road running and cross-country running.{{Cite web |last=Allsopp |first=Denise |title=Bishop's Stortford Running Club {{!}} for runners of all abilities in East Herts and West Essex |url=https://www.bsrc.org.uk/ |access-date=21 February 2022 |language=en-GB}}

Bishop's Stortford Rugby Football Club play in National League 1, the third tier of English rugby. In total, the club has around 700 male players across its Mini, Youth and Senior teams, as well as over 80 female players, as of 2021.{{Cite book |title=Bishop's Stortford Town Council, Council Meeting Agenda 20th November 2021 |publisher=Bishop's Stortford Town Council |pages=306–307}}

Public sports facilities include the Grange Paddocks swimming pool and gym, a tennis club, a squash club and a golf club. A concrete skateboard park plaza, featuring a back-and-forth run with a quarter-pipe and flat bank either side of several ledges and a rail, is located in the town park.{{Cite web |title=Bishop's Stortford Skatepark {{!}} East Herts District Council |url=https://www.eastherts.gov.uk/sports-leisure-parks/skate-parks-east-herts/bishops-stortford-skatepark |access-date=25 February 2022 |website=www.eastherts.gov.uk}} Bishop's Stortford Town Council is investing in the facility to create a broader "teenage recreation space".{{Cite web |date=3 August 2021 |title=Work set to begin on 'recreation space' for Stortford's teenagers |url=https://www.bishopsstortfordindependent.co.uk/news/new-teen-space-and-family-facilities-coming-soon-to-castle-park-9158537/ |access-date=25 February 2022 |website=Bishop's Stortford Independent |language=en}}

File:North side Rhodes Arts Complex Museum Theatre Bishop's Stortford Hertfordshire England.jpg theatre and museum]]

The South Mill Arts complex (formerly the Rhodes Arts Complex) incorporates a theatre, cinema, dance studio and conference facilities. Situated within the complex, in the house where Cecil Rhodes was born, is the Bishop's Stortford Museum. It has a local history collection, a unique collection relating to Rhodes and the British Empire in Africa, as well as a temporary exhibition gallery.{{cite web|title=Bishops Stortford Museum « Rhodes Arts Complex featuring the stage, the screen & the museum|url=http://www.rhodesbishopsstortford.org.uk/bishops-stortford-museum/|access-date=26 October 2017|website=Rhodesbishopsstortford.org.uk}}

South Mill Arts is the town's largest live music venue. In the 1960s, the Rhodes Theatre had a string of concerts by now very high-profile musicians, who were then at the start of their careers. Performers included David Bowie, Stevie Wonder and Lulu as well as iconic bands such as The Who, The Animals, The Moody Blues, Small Faces and Wayne Fontana and The Mindbenders.{{Cite web|date=22 September 2019|title=Remembering sound and vision of classic Rhodes gigs|url=https://www.bishopsstortfordindependent.co.uk/news/remembering-sound-and-vision-of-classic-rhodes-gigs-9083298/|access-date=21 February 2022|website=Bishop's Stortford Independent|language=en}}

Located in the town centre is the Complex, Anchor Street Entertainment, a multiplex which contains a health club, bowling alley and a number of food outlets.

The town is home to two amateur dramatics groups, The Water Lane Theatre Group and Bishop's Stortford Musical Theatre Company.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

The town is home to various youth organisations and youth groups, including an Army Cadet Force detachment, an Air Training Corps squadron, Scout troops,{{Cite web |title=Home |url=https://www.bishopsstortfordscouts.org.uk/ |website=bs-district-scouts}} and a GAP youth group affiliated to the Church of St James the Great in Thorley.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

There is an annual Christmas Fayre in December, with over 100 stalls and family-friendly entertainment.{{Cite web |title=Christmas Fayre 2021 {{!}} Bishop's Stortford Town Council and Tourist Information |url=https://www.bishopsstortfordtc.gov.uk/christmas-fayre-2021 |access-date=25 February 2022 |website=www.bishopsstortfordtc.gov.uk}} There is also a summer Carnival, involving a procession with over 100 community groups taking part, bands, fairground rides, entertainers and stalls.{{Cite web |title=Bishop's Stortford Carnival {{!}} Bishop's Stortford Town Council and Tourist Information |url=https://www.bishopsstortfordtc.gov.uk/content/bishops-stortford-carnival |access-date=25 February 2022 |website=www.bishopsstortfordtc.gov.uk}}

File:Bishop's Stortford 2.JPG

Being a market town and major coach stop between London and Cambridge, Stortford has many large public houses within the town centre. In 1636 The Star in Bridge Street was run by John Wood. The Inn was acquired by Hawkes and Co. and bought in 1808. In the early 20th century The Star catered for cyclists, providing cycle sheds that attracted people from local villages. John Kynnersley Kirby (1894–1962), painted local scenes and portraits of local characters, painted the interior of The Star for a painting entitled The Slate Club Secretary.{{cite web |url=http://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/guide1/the-star-inn/ |title=Guide 1: The Star Inn – Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide |website=Stortfordhistory.co.uk |access-date=26 October 2017}}

Other public houses included the 15th-century Boars Head, 16th-century Black Lion, and the Curriers Arms was in Market Square from the 1700s until 1904, in the building which until recently was a Zizzi restaurant. Between 1644 and 1810, the Reindeer operated on the present site of the Tourist Information Centre.{{cite web |url=http://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/ |title=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide – Bishop's Stortford History & Thorley History |website=Bishop's Stortford & Thorley – A History & Guide |access-date=26 October 2017}}

Stortford has grown around the River Stort valley, with the town centre lying about 60 metres above sea level, rising to over 100 metres above sea level on the eastern and western margins of the town.File:Bishop's Stortford and vicinity.jpg|204x204px]]Being in the south-east, the town enjoys a warmer climate than most of Britain and summer temperatures may sometimes reach the mid-30s C/ it is also one of the driest places in the country. Snow is often seen in the winter months because the town is near the east coast, where cold, moist air is brought in from the North Sea and cold fronts from northern Europe. In recent years{{when|date=August 2024}} there has been up to three inches of snow early in the year, which has resulted in minor disruption to transport and caused some schools to close for several days. However, the snow tends not to persist in any noticeable quantity.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

Water for the town is supplied by Affinity Water. The water is classed as very hard with over 345 mg/L of minerals and 0.225 mg/L of fluoride.

Stortford, along with the rest of Britain, has a temperate maritime climate, with cool summers and mild winters. The nearest weather station for which averages and extremes are available is Stansted Airport, about {{convert|2+1/2|mi|km|0|abbr=off}} due east of Stortford's town centre. Located at an elevation of over 100 m, the weather station, and parts of Stortford in general are marginally cooler throughout the year than the Cambridgeshire area to the north or the London area to the south. Nonetheless, Stortford is still warmer than the English average.File:Climate graph BS.JPGThe highest temperature recorded at Stansted was {{convert|35.0|C}}{{cite web

|url=http://eca.knmi.nl/utils/monitordetail.php?seasonid=14&year=2003&indexid=TXx&stationid=2125 |website=Eca.knmi.nl |title=August 2003 Maximum |access-date=25 February 2011}} during the August 2003 heatwave. In an average year the hottest day should reach {{convert|28.8|C}},{{cite web |url=http://eca.knmi.nl/utils/calcdetail.php?seasonid=0&periodid=1971-2000&indexid=TXx&stationid=2125 |website=Eca.knmi.nl |title=Mean annual warmest day |access-date=25 February 2011}} and 12.3 days{{cite web

|url=http://eca.knmi.nl/utils/calcdetail.php?seasonid=0&periodid=1971-2000&indexid=SU&stationid=2125

|title=August >25c days |website=Eca.knmi.nl |access-date=25 February 2011}} will record a temperature of {{convert|25.1|C}} or more. The lowest temperature recorded at Stansted was {{convert|-14.7|C}}{{cite web |website=Eca.knmi.nl |url=http://eca.knmi.nl/utils/monitordetail.php?seasonid=0&year=1981&indexid=TNn&stationid=2125

|title=1981 minimum |access-date=25 February 2011}} during December 1981. Notably cold minimum temperatures tend not to occur due to the lack of higher terrain meaning little cold air drainage occurs. The average annual coldest night should fall to {{convert|-7.6|C}},{{cite web |url=http://eca.knmi.nl/utils/calcdetail.php?seasonid=0&periodid=1971-2000&indexid=TNn&stationid=2125 |website=Eca.knmi.nl |title=Annual average coldest night |access-date=25 February 2011}} with 47.3{{cite web |url=http://eca.knmi.nl/utils/calcdetail.php?seasonid=0&periodid=1971-2000&indexid=FD&stationid=2125 |website=Eca.knmi.nl |title=Annual average air frost |access-date=25 February 2011}} air frosts being recorded in an average year.

Typically, the Stortford area will receive an average of 622 mm of rain during the course of the year.{{cite web

|url=http://eca.knmi.nl/utils/calcdetail.php?seasonid=0&periodid=1961-1990&indexid=RR&stationid=2125 |title=Rainfall data |website=Eca.knmi.nl |access-date=25 February 2011}} 1 mm or more of rain will be recorded on 114.7 days{{cite web

|url=http://eca.knmi.nl/utils/calcdetail.php?seasonid=0&periodid=1961-1990&indexid=RR1&stationid=2125 |title=Rainfall data |website=Eca.knmi.nl |access-date=25 February 2011}} of the year.

Temperature averages refer to the period 1971–2000, rainfall averages to 1961–1990.

{{Weather box

|location = Stansted, elevation 101m, 1971–2000, Rainfall 1961–1990

|collapsed =

|metric first = y

|single line = y

| Jan high C = 6.5

| Feb high C = 6.9

| Mar high C = 9.8

| Apr high C = 12.2

| May high C = 16.1

| Jun high C = 19.0

| Jul high C = 21.7

| Aug high C = 21.8

| Sep high C = 18.4

| Oct high C = 14.1

| Nov high C = 9.6

| Dec high C = 7.4

|year high C = 13.5

| Jan low C = 0.9

| Feb low C = 0.7

| Mar low C = 2.4

| Apr low C = 3.8

| May low C = 6.8

| Jun low C = 9.7

| Jul low C = 12.0

| Aug low C = 12.0

| Sep low C = 9.9

| Oct low C = 7.0

| Nov low C = 3.4

| Dec low C = 1.9

|year low C = 5.9

| Jan precipitation mm = 53.97

| Feb precipitation mm = 39.54

| Mar precipitation mm = 49.31

| Apr precipitation mm = 46.53

| May precipitation mm = 45.95

| Jun precipitation mm = 50.20

| Jul precipitation mm = 53.37

| Aug precipitation mm = 56.54

| Sep precipitation mm = 52.66

| Oct precipitation mm = 55.01

| Nov precipitation mm = 59.50

| Dec precipitation mm = 59.51

|year precipitation mm = 622.09

|source 1=YR.NO{{cite web |url=http://www.yr.no/place/United_Kingdom/England/Great_Hallingbury~2648091/statistics.html |title=Climate Normals 1971–2000 |publisher=YR.NO |access-date=25 February 2011}}

|source 2=KNMI{{cite web |url=http://eca.knmi.nl/utils/mapserver/climatology.php?indexcat=**&indexid=RR1&periodidselect=1961-1990&seasonid=0&scalelogidselect=no&minx=-588333.333336&miny=-4650000.000001&maxx=278333.333335&maxy=-3999999.999998&MapSize=560%2C420&imagewidth=560&imageheight=420&mainmap.x=394&mainmap.y=272&CMD=QUERY_POINT&CMD=QUERY_POINT#bottom |title=Climate Normals 1961–1990 |publisher=KNMI |access-date=25 February 2011}} |date=February 2011}}

{{Infobox COA wide

|title = Bishop's Stortford Town Council

|escutcheon = Vert on a pale Argent surmounted by a fess wavy of the last charged with a bar wavy Azure counterchanged on the pale a mitre and garb Proper.

|crest = On a wreath of the colours on a mount Vert the battlements of a tower Proper issuant therefrom a cross pommelled Gules.

|motto = Pro Deo Et Populo (For God And The People).{{cite web|url=http://civicheraldry.co.uk/east_of_england.html |title=East of England Region |publisher=Civic Heraldry of England |access-date=9 March 2021}}

|notes = Originally granted to Bishop's Stortford Urban District Council on 20 August 1952.}}

{{Reflist|30em}}

{{wikivoyage|Bishop's Stortford}}

• {{commons category-inline|Bishop's Stortford}}

{{EB1911 poster|Bishop Stortford}}

• [http://www.bishopsstortford.org/ Bishop's Stortford Town Council] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110621002938/http://www.bishopsstortford.org/ |date=21 June 2011 }}
• [http://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/ Bishop's Stortford and Thorley: A History and Guide] – comprehensive history

{{NSEW|Stansted Mountfitchet|Sawbridgeworth, Harlow|Great Dunmow|Hertford|||||}}

{{Hertfordshire}}

{{Civil parishes of Hertfordshire}}

{{authority control}}

Category:Towns in Hertfordshire

Category:Market towns in Hertfordshire

Category:Civil parishes in Hertfordshire

Category:River Stort

Category:East Hertfordshire District