Abingdon is located in southern England and is a civil parish and market town. It is just to the south of Oxford in the Thames valley, in the middle of Witney and Dorchester. The area has had people living in it since the Iron Age with relicts from this time still lying below ground in the center of town. In Saxon times the Abbey was started but the exact time is not known because of the mixture of history and legend that is swirling around the town. Legends were long ago created to elevate the status of the town.
William the Conqueror held an Easter celebration at the Abbey in 1084 and chose for his son, Henry I, to receive his education there. By the 14th century the town had developed into a center of agriculture with its booming wool trade and famous clothing and weaving industry. A well known riot was staged there in 1337 in protest of the control that the Abott held over the local market and some monk's were killed.
In 1538 the abbey was dissolved and the town slowly began to decay. Mary I in 1555 heard of the towns terrible condition so she granted a charter to give the town a mayor plus other law enforcement and governing officials. Edward VI founded the present day Christ's Hospital after the original hospital that was owned by the Guild of the Holy Cross was dissolved. Later James II changes the way the mayor and the other representatives operated.
Abingdon Lock was constructed in 1790 and allowed more access to the town. Then the Wilts and Berks Canal was completed in 1810 which connected Abingdon to Semington by way of the Kennett and Avon Canal. The canal was later deserted in 1906 but is now being rebuilt. The Abingdon Railway finished construction in 1856 which connected to the Great Western Railway in Didcot. The railway stopped transporting people in 1963 and all freight by 1984.
In 2007 the town centre was rebuilt due to a development plan enacted by the council. The streets that surround the centre where changed from one way to two way to allow easier access and less traffic congestion. The area was also repaved. There are current plans to put a roof over the old shopping area and an information area.
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