The name Sunbury derives from the 10th century Saxon Lord, Sunna, who built a "Burgh", or settlement, on the Sunbury riverside.
Sunbury is made up of two separate areas, Lower Sunbury, which is also sometimes referred to as Sunbury Village, and Sunbury Common which incorporates Sunbury Cross. Many of the links with the past are set in the former village alongside the Thames.
The Parish Church of St Mary, overlooking the Thames in Lower Sunbury, has a tower and nave dating from 1752, but is on the site of a 14th century building. A yew tree within the churchyard was mentioned in the Charles Dickens' classic of "Oliver Twist".
The Sunbury Clock at Sunbury Cross was erected in June 1897 in celebration of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee, and has become a distinctive Spelthorne landmark. Refurbishment of the shopping cntre has made Sunbury Cross more prominent, and attractive with a wider range of shopping and car parking facilities for shoppers, in a modern pleasant environment.
In Thames Street "The Magpie Hotel", which dates back to the early 19th century, has a tablet which confirms that this was the original meeting place of the Grand Order of Water Rats in 1889. An older, but equally interesting public house is "The Harrow" in nearby Charlton. Parts of this inn date from 1500, making it one of the oldest domestic buildings within Spelthorne, with its thatched roof and porches adding to its charm.
