A misconception about Colnbrook is that many people believe it is mentioned in the Domesday Book, this however is not so. Nevertheless it is an area containing a large amount of Historical interest, and is mentioned in old deeds dating back to just after the Domesday Book as VICULUS meaning a village/hamlet in Latin. Over the century’s Colnbrook has been documented under different names, some of these include Colebrook, Culbrook and Colbrook. As we know from the romans, river names are some of the oldest names still used today. It was customary for roman’s to assign local place names, usually the names of local rivers. Certainly many of the earliest post classical forms suggest a link between the river name and the place name, Colne as a river is well evidenced and the name Colne would give its name to a settlement, rather than taking its name from one. The name Colnbrook could come from the crossing of the Colne brook which runs through the centre of the village. The Colne brook is a tributary of the river Colne, which branches off the river Colne at Uxbridge.

Map of Colnbrook dated 1820 with proposed West Drayton to Staines Railway

Lying within four parishes Colnbrook was split between Horton Marish, Langley Marish and Iver all of which were in Buckinghamshire, as well as Stanwell in Middlesex. The bridge over the Colne Brook was the border between Middlesex and Bucks. Between the 13th and 17th century Colnbrook village stood to the west of the Colne brook, to the east of the Colne brook was the hamlet of Rudsworth in the parish of Stanwell. Rudsworth housed many inns including the Catherine wheel, the White Heart, Cross keys and the Star and Garter and later became known as ‘Colnbrook End’ and in the 19th century became part of Colnbrook Village.