Saffron Walden, mun. bor., market town, and par., Essex, 15 miles S. of Cambridge and 43¾ miles NE. of London by rail, 7410 ac., pop. 6060; P.O., T.O, 2 Banks. Market-day, Saturday. Saffron Walden has an iron foundry, breweries, &c., and is an agricultural centre, with markets for cattle, corn, and farm produce. It is a place of great antiquity, with remains of a castle built or rebuilt shortly after the Conquest. It was made a mun. bor. in the time of Edward VI.

(John Bartholomew, Gazetteer of the British Isles (1887))