The Town Of Long Eaton
Categories: Local Information
Long Eaton is referred to as Aitone, in the Domesday Book, and grew up close to the lowest bridging point of the River Erewash.
In 1228 the town gained the "Long" prefix due to the length of the town. The "Great Fire of Long Eaton" ripped through 14 houses and several other building in the Market Place destroying them in 1694.
The town developed around the lace-making and railway wagon industries in the nineteenth century. Long Eaton railway station is on the Midland Main Line and the Erewash Canal passes through the town.
In 1921 Long Eaton's boundaries were extended bringing Wilsthorpe and parts of both Sandiacre and Sawley into the town.
County issues
Long Eaton is in the County of Derbyshire on the border with Nottinghamshire. Most residences have a Nottingham address with the Nottingham postcode prefix NG, and use the Nottingham telephone area code 0115.
It is a common misconception that Long Eaton is part of Nottinghamshire. The reason for the NG prefix in the postal code is that all mail for Long Eaton first goes to the Royal Mail's Nottingham sorting office in Beeston (hence the NG), and then to Long Eaton's delivery office on Tamworth Road.
The Local Government Commission for England (1958 - 1967) recommended that Long Eaton became part of an enlarged Nottingham City Council. This was not the only time Long Eaton's status in Derbyshire was threatened as the original draft of the Local Government Act 1972 had considered moving Long Eaton into Nottinghamshire. The Redcliffe-Maud Report proposals of 1969 also recommended the town be moved into Nottinghamshire but the incoming Conservative administration rejected the proposal. This issue has rumbled on over many years.
Notable architecture
A notable building in the town is the Palladian Long Eaton Hall, now part of the larger Long Eaton Town Hall complex of the late 1980s.
Another notable building is the Parish Church of St. Laurence. Local tradition dates the church to the 11th century, possibly built under King Cnut. However, it is more likely that it dates to after the Norman Conquest, possibly into the 12th century. It was originally a daughter church of All Saints, Sawley, but gained its independence in the 19th century. Nowadays the church is overlooked by a large Tesco Extra store, but originally it would have been surrounded by small cottages.
There are several fine examples of industrial architecture left in Long Eaton. Most are connected with the town's development as a lace-making centre. By 1907, the town housed almost 1,400 lace machines and the industry employed over 4,000 people (a quarter of the population). One of the largest lace-making mills, Harrington Mill, was built in 1885. It took one and a quarter million bricks to build the 167 metre long factory and it has 224 cast-iron windows down one side. Harrington Mill is a traditional, four-storey, red lace mill, built by a consortium of lace manufacturers. The turrets on the sides of the building house the original staircases.
A glance above the shops on High Street and the Market Place can reveal some surprisingly interesting architecture. There is also some bland and disappointing 1960s and 1970s styling but in general Long Eaton's main shopping streets have retained more character than those of most towns of its size.
In mid-2010 work began to enhance and improve the layout and paving of Long Eaton town centre and Taxi rank.
Schools
Long Eaton has two state secondary schools, The Long Eaton School and Wilsthorpe Business and Enterprise College as well as several primary schools. It is also home to the public school Trent College and the Elms School for children from 3-11.
Part of the Long Eaton school (which operated for years 7, 8 and 9) was demolished in 2006, after a new school was built next door, on the same grounds. Both upper and lower sections of the school are now in one building. Previously, the sections were separated by the Erewash Canal. In 2005 Wilsthorpe School gained specialist status in business and enterprise. The Long Eaton School has also gained specialist status in science and has received the permanent eco-flag. The Long Eaton School was recently rebuilt, and was opened by Gordon Brown when he was Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Brass band
Long Eaton also has a successful brass band, the Long Eaton Silver Prize Band, which is one of only two brass bands still functioning in Erewash. The band was formed in 1906 as a result of severance from the local Temperance Society. At the height of its success, it reached the Brass Band Second Section. The band still rehearses in the Long Eaton Silver Prize Band Club on Salisbury Street in Long Eaton.
In recent times, the band has regained some of its former glories under its current Musical Director, Sharon Stansfield. In 2006, the band's centenary year, the band won the Midland Area Regional Championships, the band's first contest win since 1966. This secured them promotion back to the Second Section, and an invitation to the National Championships of Great Britain. The band also won this contest, providing their best contest result since 1927, and also making Sharon Stansfield the first female conductor to win the National Finals in the Third Section.
Sport
Speedway racing was staged at the Long Eaton Stadium on Station Road, the first meeting was held on 18 May 1929 The Long Eaton Invaders became National Speedway Champions in 1984. However, the Speedway stadium closed in 1997. The former area of the speedway stadium has now received planning permission from the council for a series of new homes and a possibly a partial playing field for Grange Primary School.
Long Eaton United F.C. play in the Northern Counties East Football League. The town also has a Rugby club, Long Eaton RUFC.
Long Eaton Rangers F.C. was founded in 1889 but were bankrupt[citation needed] ten years later.
Long Eaton Cricket Club is a cricket club in the town of Long Eaton. The club plays in Division A of the South Notts Cricket League, with a Second XI in Division E and a Third XI in Division P. The club has three adult sides on Saturdays and two on Sundays, in addition to junior sides for all age groups from under-11s Kwik cricket to under-15s. A Veterans' team plays regular matches on Friday evenings. They also have 2 mid-week teams.
Sawley & Long Eaton Park is the other major cricket club in the locality. The club plays at West Park and has five senior teams, four teams play in the Derbyshire County Cricket League, the 1st XI is in Division 1. The other senior team is the Ladies who play other clubs throughout Derbyshire. The junior section has teams from 7 to 17 all playing in the Cricket Erewash Leagues. The club is Sport England clubmark accredited and is a Derbyshire Cricket Board community focus club.
Original information taken from Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Eaton
Distributed under a Creative Commons licence
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0
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