Long Eaton

Long Eaton is a town in the Erewash district of Derbyshire, England, just north of the River Trent, about south-west of Nottingham and some south-east of Derby. The town population was 37,760 at the 2011 census. Long Eaton has been part of Erewash borough since 1 April 1974, when Long Eaton Urban District was disbanded.
Geography.
Long Eaton is located in Derbyshire, forming part of the border with Nottinghamshire and very close to Leicestershire. The town is covered by the Nottingham post town and has a Nottingham telephone area code (0115).
History.
Long Eaton is referred to as "Aitone", in the "Domesday Book". Several meanings are associated with the name, for example "farm between streams" or "low-lying land". This farming settlement grew up close to the lowest bridging point of the River Erewash.
The "Great Fire of Long Eaton" destroyed 14 houses and several other buildings in the market place in 1694.
The village remained a constant size until the construction of the Midland Counties Railway in 1839 and the Erewash Valley Line in 1844, which brought links that encouraged growth. Two industries came to employ many people in the growing town: lace-making and railway waggon manufacturing. A large railway yard at Toton Sidings grew up just north of the town.
By 1900 the town population had grown to over 10,000, through construction of new houses, business premises and factories throughout the Victorian period. In 1921 Long Eaton's boundaries were extended, bringing Wilsthorpe and parts of both Sandiacre and Sawley into the town.
Notable architecture.
A notable building in the town is the Palladian Long Eaton Hall. This was originally a private residence, but is now occupied by the borough council, and is attached to the Long Eaton Town Hall complex, which opened in 1991.
The Parish Church of St Laurence stands to the east of the Market Place. Local tradition dates parts of the church to the 11th century, possibly built under Viking King Cnut. However, some place the oldest parts of the church after the Norman Conquest, possibly in the 12th century. It was originally a daughter church of All Saints, Sawley, but gained separate status in the 19th century.
There are several fine examples of industrial architecture 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.
The floors above the shops in High Street and the Market Place show that large parts of the centre were built in Victorian or early 20th-century times. The New Central Building is an example of late Victorian architecture. The High Street and Market Place were pedestrianised in the 1990s. The work to enhance and improve the layout and paving of Long Eaton town centre was completed in 2010.
Transport.
The main road through the town forms part of the A6005 and junction 25 of the M1 motorway is on its north-western border. The area round the town-centre traffic island is locally called The Green.
Long Eaton railway station is on the Midland Main Line from London, St Pancras. The broad Erewash Canal passes through the town.
There are bus services every few minutes to the nearby cities of Nottingham and Derby. Other local services include the East Midlands Airport.
Schools.
Long Eaton has two state secondary schools, The Long Eaton School and Wilsthorpe School, and several primary schools, including Brooklands, St Lawrence, Dovedale, Sawley, Harrington, English Martyrs, Longmoor and Grange. It also contains the public school Trent College, the private Elms School for ages 3–11, and a 2 special needs schools: Stanton Vale and Brackenfield SEND School.
Long Eaton School was split into two sites: Lower for years 7, 8 and 9, and Upper for years 10, 11 and sixth form. The Lower School building, opened in 1965, was demolished in 2006, when new school premises were built next door on the same grounds. Upper and Lower are now in one building again, which was opened by Gordon Brown as Chancellor of the Exchequer. It has gained specialist status in science, become an eco school with an eco club, and recently gained academy relations. There is a research-grade telescope built on school grounds., where regular stargazing sessions are open to the public. It has partnership and student-exchange relations with Spanish, French, Italian and Chinese schools abroad.
In 2005 Wilsthorpe School gained specialist status in business and enterprise. In 2018, the school was rebuilt. Both Wilsthorpe and Long Eaton schools have an OFSTED rating of "good".
Brass band.
Long Eaton Silver Prize brass band is one of only two still functioning in Erewash. It was formed in 1906 after severing from a local temperance society. At its height, it reached the Brass Band Second Section. The original club building in Sailsbury Street closed in early 2015, but the band itself plays on.
In 2006, its centenary year, the band won the Midland Area Regional Championships, its first contest win since 1966. This secured promotion back to the Second Section and an invitation to the National Championships of Great Britain. The band also won this contest, in what were its best contest results since 1927.
Sport.
Long Eaton Speedway raced 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. Its area now holds a new estate of houses and flats to let and buy, and in part a playing field for Grange Primary School.
Long Eaton United F.C. plays in the Midland Football League, as founder members in 2014. The club was formed in 1956 but records show football prominent in the town for many years before. The Football Club has many junior sides and gained FA Charter Standard Community Club status in 2013. It also has a ladies' team competing in the East Midlands Womens Football League.
Long Eaton Rangers F.C. was founded in 1889 but left the Midland League in 1899.
The town has a rugby club, Long Eaton RFC and two recreational cricket clubs: Long Eaton Cricket Club, established in 1972, and Sawley Cricket Club moved onto West Park from nearby Sawley park in 1977.
Recreation.
The main park is West Park which has a café and neighbours West Park Leisure Centre. 
Long Eaton holds an annual "Chestnut Fair" in November.
In a tradition which started in 1931, the town hosts an annual Carnival each year – currently on the third Saturday in June. The event commences with a parade of floats, decorated vehicles and walkers in fancy dress, which circulates round the town. It continues in the afternoon and evening with a range of entertainment, stalls and a funfair on the Carnival showground on West Park.
Notable people.
This is an alphabetical list of notable people in Long Eaton with a Wikipedia page.