The original settlement at Eccles centred on a Cistercian Nunnery that was founded around 1150 by the Earl of Dunbar. The nunnery was also associated with a medieval church dedicated to St Andrew. Crosshall Cross, half a mile north of Eccles was erected as a signpost to the Nunnery.
The Convent Church of St Mary the Virgin was sacked in the 1540s and eventually abandoned in the early 17th century. Parts of the ruin were incorporated into the boundary walls of the present Eccles Parish Church, built in 1774.
A free church and manse were built at the junction of the Birgham Road with Eccles Main Street, directly opposite the development site. The church is now the village hall.
Eccles House and its surrounding estate were built in the 18th century.
The cottages along the main street are late Georgian and Victorian and Eccles Mains Farm, the site of the development, dates from this period. Part of the original steadings was developed during the 20th century but these elements have now been demolished.