In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Longtown like this:
LONGTOWN, a town, a township, two sub-districts, and a district in Cumberland. The town stands on the river Esk, adjacent to the North British railway, at the forking of the branches toward Carlisle and Gretna, 3 miles S of the boundary with Scotland, and 8½ N by W of Carlisle; was founded, at a remote period, by the Grahams of Netherby; continued, till a recent period, to be only a poor village; is now a well built place, with good modern houses, and regular spacious streets; is a seat of petty sessions and a polling-place; and has a postoffice ‡ under Carlisle, a railway station, a stone bridge over the Esk, a church of the Church of Scotland, a United Presbyterian church, a United Free Methodist chapel of 1866, and a free school founded in 1754. ...
Markets are held on Mondays and Thursdays; a fair for horses, on the Thursday before Whitsunday; and hiring fairs, on Whit-Thursday and at Martinmas. Many of the inhabitants are weavers in the employment of manufacturers at Carlisle.-The township includes the town, comprises 2,538 acres, and is in the parish of Arthuret. Real property, £5,810. Pop. in 1851,2,234; in 1861, 2,863. Houses, 497. The increase of pop. arose from the establishment of a bobbin mill, and from the employment of labourers at the forming of the railway.- The two sub-districts are High Longtown and Low Longtown. H. L. sub-d. contains the parishes of Stapleton and Bewcastle, and the chapelry of Nichol-Forest. Acres, 48,637. Pop., 3,291. Houses, 529. L. L. sub-d. contains the parishes of Arthuret, Kirklinton, and Scaleby, and the Moat, Middle, and Nether quarters of Kirk-Andrews-upon-Esk parish. Acres, 38,234. Pop., 7,178. Houses, 1,262.—The district consists of these two sub-districts. Acres, 86,871. Poor rates in 1863, £3,910. Pop. in 1851,9,696; in 1861,10,469. Houses, 1,791. Marriages in 1863,38; births, 259,-f which 53 were illegitimate; deaths, 177,-of which 66 were at ages under 5 years, and 10 at ages above 85. Marriages in the ten years 1851-60,396; births, 2,979; deaths, 1,756. The places of worship, in 1851, were 7 of the Church of England, with 1,770 sittings; 1 of the Church of Scotland, with 250 s.; 1 of the Presbyterian Church in England, with 300 s.; 2 of the United Presbyterian Church, with 500 s.; 2 of Quakers, with 370 s.; 3 of Wesleyans, with 490 s.; and 1 of the Wesleyan Association, with 35 attendants. The schools were 17 public day-schools, with 694 scholars; 17 private day-schools, with 614 s.; and 11 Sunday schools, with 772 s. The workhouse is in Netherby township; and, at the census of 1861, had 72 inmates.
Longtown through time
Longtown is now part of Carlisle district. Click here for graphs and data of how Carlisle has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Longtown itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Longtown, in Carlisle and Cumberland | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/20357
Date accessed: 20th April 2024
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