Longton was a market town in the parish of Stoke in the county of Staffordshire. The town still has a market housed in an attractively renovated market hall. Coal miners in the Hanley and Longton area ignited the 1842 general strike and associated Pottery Riots. In March 1865, Longton and Lane End were incorporated as the Borough of Longton. On 1 April 1910, the town was federated into the county borough of Stoke-on-Trent. In 1925 the area was granted city status. One legacy of Longton's administrative independence from 1865 to 1910 is Longton Town Hall, a prominent landmark in the town centre. In 1986 Longton Town Hall faced demolition by Stoke-on-Trent City Council amid considerable local protest. Work on stripping the interior had already begun before an injunction was brought and the building saved. Together with Rochdale, then in Lancashire, Longton was host to the first Workers Educational Association tutorial classes. R.H. Tawney, known as "the patron saint of adult education", taught the classes for three years starting in January 1908. For a time, until he moved to Manchester in 1909, Tawney was working as part-time economics lecturer at Glasgow University. To fulfil his teaching commitments to the WEA, he travelled first to Longton for the evening class every Friday, before travelling north to Rochdale for the Saturday afternoon class. Arnold Bennett referred to Longton as Longshaw in his novels centred on the Potteries towns.
Industry
The district has a long history as a base for the pottery industry, such as Paragon China and Aynsley, and several major manufacturers still have a presence, along with Gladstone Pottery Museum. Roslyn Works, which adjoins the latter, is now home to several small-scale manufacturers of ceramics.
A new shopping precinct, the Bennett Precinct, opened in 1962. It is now named Longton Exchange. In 2003 a large Tesco Extra superstore was built and has helped to rejuvenate the town. Since then, other major retailers such as Argos, Next, Pizza Hut, Matalan, Wilko and B & M have opened new premises. Then, building firm St. Modwen's, opened an £8 million retail complex in April 2012. The stores there include McDonald's, Pets at Home, Smyths and Currys. Other local business like Hylands Ltd and Bevans have also thrived in the area.
Nightlife
was a very popular nightspot in the 1970s, attracting some of the biggest names in entertainment. In the early 1990s, Shelley's Laserdome became widely known throughout the Midlands as a rave venue, but it was forced to close in 1992.
Notable people
Sir John Edensor Heathcote Stoke-on-Trent industrialist, owner of Longton Hall, which he rebuilt in 1778.
John Aynsley English potter who established the Portland Works in Longton.
William Weston Australasian billiardist, emigrated from Longton aged 3.
Andrew Evans a soldier from Longton, stationed at Whittington Barracks, was wrongfully convicted and served 25 years in custody after confessing to the 1972 murder of Judith Roberts, a 14-year-old schoolgirl from Tamworth.
