Long Stanton railway station operated between 1847 and 1970. A part of the Cambridge and Huntingdon railway the station was immortalised in the Flanders and Swann song, “Slow Train”. Despite surviving the Beeching Axe, passenger services to Long Stanton were ended in 1970.
Cambridgeshire Guided Busway, the world´s longest guided busway, serves Longstanton.
The village has a newly rebuilt primary school, a Village Institute, numerous businesses, including a Post Office, and a Health Centre. The Black Bull pub is over 300 years old and has recently been extended to provide a smart restaurant specialising in Chinese cuisine.
For more detailed historical background, please see pages 6-10 of the Longstanton Parish Plan - 2005-2015. Also the website of the Longstanton and District Heritage Society is a goldmine of historical information about our village.
The Village Sign
With thanks to
The Cambridgeshire Village Book and
visitoruk.com.
“The village’s most famous family were the Hattons. Sir Thomas Hatton was the cousin of Sir Christopher, Chancellor to Queen Elizabeth I. Hattons lived here in a manor house now gone, until the line died out in 1812. However, the family left their mark – All Saints’ church holds all the family tombs and memorials, including a fine chest tomb of the 17th century, with the recumbent figures of Sir Thomas and his wife Mary with their six children. The family crest includes a golden hind and this emblem caused Sir Francis Drake to rename his ship to honour Sir Christopher, his patron. Longstanton Women’s Institute used the Golden Hind emblem on the village sign which they planned and funded in 1982.”
The logo currently used by the Parish Council is derived directly from the village sign which stands at the end of the Dale, just opposite the Village Institute.
More Information
In May 2017, the Longstanton & District Heritage Society published a leaflet ‘A Guide to Northstowe History‘. Intended primarily for new residents of Northstowe, and despite its title, this is essentially a short history of Longstanton.
It is available online here.