Situated on the northern banks of the Coovum River, Egmore is an important residential area as well as a commercial and transportation hub.

[1] An inscription of the Nellore Chola king Vijaya Kanda Gopal dated 2 September 1264 speaks of a village in Elumur-Tudarmuni Nadu in Pulal Kottam.

A Vijayanagar period inscription of Sriranganatha Yadavaraya records an endowment to a monastery in Thiruvottriyur by a resident of Serruppedu (identified with the present day Chetpet) in Elumur-Tudarmuni Nadu.

Egmore is the Anglicised form of "Ezhumbur", the name of a pre-British era village situated on the northern banks of the River.

However, recently the Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (ADMK), have made significant in-grounds, like they have in many localities around Chennai, which used to be DMK strongholds.

Egmore has its own suburban train station on the Chennai Beach - Tambaram Line, which connects it to other parts of the city.