EPSOM  , a

market town in the Epsom parliamentary division of Surrey, England, 14 m . S.W. by S. of London Bridge . Pop. of urban district (1901), 10,915 . It is served by the London & South-Western and the London, Brighton & South Coast railways, and on the racecourse on the neighbouring Downs there is a station (Tattenham Corner) of the South-Eastern & Chatham railway . The principal building is the parish church of St Martin, a good example of modern Gothic, the interior of which contains some fine sculptures by Flaxrnan and Chantrey . Epsom (a contraction of Ebbisham, still the name of the manor) first came into notice when mineral springs were discovered there about 1618 . For some time after their discovery the town enjoyed a wonderful degree of prosperity . After the Restoration it was often visited by Charles II., and when Queen Anne came to the throne, her husband, Prince George of Denmark, made it his frequent resort . Epsom gradually lost its celebrity as a spa, but the annual races held on its downs arrested the decay of the town . Races appear to have been established here as early as James I's residence at Nonsuch, but they did not assume a permanent character until 1730 . The principal races—the Derby and Oaks—are named after one of the earls of Derby and his seat, the Oaks, which is in the neighbourhood . The latter race was established in 1779, and the former in the following year .

The

spring races are held on a Thursday and Friday towards the close of April; and the great Epsom meeting takes place on the Tuesday and three following days immediately before Whitsuntide,—the Derby on the Wednesday, and the Oaks on the Friday (see HORSE-RACING) . The grand stand was erected in 1829, and subsequently enlarged; and there are numerous training stables in the vicinity . Close to the town are the extensive buildings of the Royal Medical Benevolent College, commonly called Epsom College, founded in 1855 . Scholars on the foundation must be the sons of medical men, but in other respects the school is open . In the neighbourhood is the Durdans, a seat of the earl of Rosebery .