Tattenham or 'Totnams' is first recorded during the reign of James I (1603 -1625) and was probably associated in the late 13th and 14th centuries with a Roger de Tottenham, who came from Tottenham in Middlesex, now London.

Tattenham was once a sparsely populated location in the parish of Banstead. It owes its fame to the fact that the corner in question forms a strategic part of the one and half miles of the Epsom Racecourse, used for the world's most famous flat race, the Derby. Millions throughout the world, who have never even visited Epsom, will have heard of Tattenham Corner.

A railway was opened to Tattenham Corner in 1901 and the station here is the terminus of the line. It proved popular as a means of access to the races for the thousands of people who flock here each year. After the Derby of 1923 over 40,000 passengers departed from the station in just a few hours. Before the advent of television it was not unknown for there to be a quarter of a million visitors to the Downs on Derby Day.

When war broke out in August 1914 Epsom Downs became an assembly point for thousands of troops and Tattenham Corner Station was closed for public use, except on race days. It did not re-open with a full public service until 1928.

This western end of Banstead was ripe for residential development and, during the 1930s, roads were laid out and house building began. Further estates were constructed after the Second World War.