The 'View of the High-Street' was commissioned by the Oxford dealer and frame-maker James Wyatt in November 1809 as the basis for an engraving. Late in December Turner went to Oxford to make a drawing, perhaps that now in the British Museum though this was probably done considerably earlier and lacks the buildings in the immediate foreground, having been taken from slightly further west (T.B.CXX-F). The picture was finished in March 1810, sent to Oxford before 6 April but returned in time for the opening of Turner's gallery on 7 May. Some alterations were made to the figures and the spire of St. Mary's was raised at Wyatt's request. It was subsequently engraved by John Pye and S. Middiman, with figures by C. Heath, and published by Wyatt on 14 March 1812. A smaller print by W. E. Albutt was published in Paris in 1828.

The later companion picture of ‘Oxford from the Abingdon Road', also commissioned by Wyatt, was painted between Christmas 1811 and April 1812, in time to be shown with the other at the Academy in 1812. It was engraved by Pye and Heath and published by Wyatt on 13 February 1818. There is a large annotated pencil drawing of the composition in the British Museum (T.B.CXC(a)-A), said by Finberg to be watermarked 1814 (1909, 1, p.597); if so, it was presumably done for the engraving.

As in the case of 'Hannibal crossing the Alps' Turner had trouble over the hanging of these two pictures at the Academy in 1812. On 13 April he wrote to Wyatt that 'Your Pictures are hung at the Academy, but not to my satisfaction'. He suggested that he should withdraw them and show them at his own gallery or the British Institution the following year, but left the final decision to Wyatt who presumably preferred them to remain in order to help the sale of the engravings'. The St. James' Chronicle for 23-26 May, after reviewing 'Hannibal', mentioned that Mr. Turner has three other fine views, these two and the later version of the second Bonneville picture (see No.74).

For later watercolours of Oxford High Street see Nos.443-7.