Coordinates: 51°36′22″N 1°14′28″W / 51.606°N 1.241°W / 51.606; -1.241

Didcot (/ˈdɪdkɒt/) or (/ˈdɪdkət/) is a town and civil parish in the South East region of England. It is located within the administrative county of Oxfordshire, while historically part of the traditional county of Berkshire. Didcot lies 9 miles (14 km) south of Oxford and is the largest town in the South Oxfordshire district. Didcot is known for its railway junction, railway museum and power stations, and is the gateway town to the Science Vale: three large science and technology centres in the surrounding villages of Milton (Milton Park), Culham (Culham Science Centre) and Harwell (Harwell Science and Innovation Campus which includes the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory).

History

Ancient and medieval

The area around present-day Didcot has been inhabited for at least 9000 years, a large scale archaeological dig between 2010–2013 produced finds from the Mesolithic, Neolithic, Iron Age and Bronze Ages. During the Roman era the inhabitants of the area tried to drain the marshland by digging ditches through what is now the Ladygrove area north of the town near Long Wittenham, evidence of which was found during surveying in 1994. A hoard of 126 gold Roman coins dating to around 160 CE was found just outside the village in 1995 by an enthusiast with a metal detector; this is now displayed at the Ashmolean Museum on loan from the British Museum.