Potters Bar

Coordinates: 51°41′53″N 0°10′59″W / 51.698°N 0.183°W / 51.698; -0.183

Potters Bar is a town in Hertfordshire, England,18 miles (29 km) north of London. In 2011, it had a population of 21,882.

The town dates to the early 13th century but remained a small, mainly agricultural, settlement until the arrival of the Great Northern Railway in 1850. It is now part of the London commuter belt.

Etymology

The origin of the Potters element of the town's name is uncertain but is generally thought to be either a reference to a Roman pottery, believed to have been sited locally, or alternatively to the Pottere family who lived in neighbouring South Mimms parish. The Bar is thought to refer to the gates leading from the South Mimms parish and into the Enfield Chase parish, or possibly from some sort of toll on the Great North Road, said to have been by what is now the Green Man pub, or at the current entrance to Morven House. See also Temple Bar which is a gate by St Paul's Cathedral.

History