Stoke-on-Trent villages are easy to explore, making them an excellent base for visiting the Peak District and discovering its rich pottery history.<\/p>\n

At the turn of the 19th century, six Staffordshire pottery towns (Tunstall, Burslem, Hanley, Shawport, Fenton and Longton) came together into one large federated entity that came to be known as Stoke-on-Trent. Over 36 square miles are filled with urban and suburban development.<\/p>\n

Longport<\/h2>\n

Longport is an area in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England that serves as home for Longbridge Hayes industrial estate as well as Gladstone Pottery Museum; an operating medium-sized coal-fired pottery located at Limekiln Lane area of city with exhibitions and demonstrations of this medium-sized coal fired pottery from Victorian period that features exhibits and demonstrations; it’s one of oldest preserved examples and is grade II listed building.<\/p>\n

Economic activity in Stoke-on-Trent revolves around ceramic production. Royal Doulton porcelain ware is the city’s best known product, while other ceramic items produced include earthenware, flint glass and bricks. Home to British Ceramic Research Association laboratories as well as programs offering ceramic technology training at Stoke-on-Trent University; nicknamed The Potteries because of this industry.<\/p>\n

Longport enjoys an ideal location, easily accessible from both the M6 motorway and Newcastle airport, with bus and rail transport providing access to it all. Public transport in Longport includes London Northwestern Railway’s hourly trains serving Stafford and Crewe while East Midlands Railway offers limited train service (2-3 daily services to Nottingham with one train continuing on to Newark Castle).<\/p>\n

From Stoke-on-Trent, Longport is easily accessible via train, bus or taxi. Train travel takes only four minutes. Advance tickets may also save money; these can be found both online and at ticket offices; national rail cards provide up to 1\/3 off eligible train ticket purchases.<\/p>\n

Restaurants in the area provide guests with delicious local cuisine, while there are shops and cafes as well as hotels such as Quality Hotel Longport which offers affordable rooms close to both city center and free parking, making this hotel suitable for both business travelers and leisure tourists. Furthermore, it features an indoor pool and gym along with rooms equipped with satellite TV and minibars – not to mention free parking available on-site!<\/p>\n

Hanley<\/h2>\n

Stoke-on-Trent is home to some of the world’s leading pottery brands, such as Wedgwood and Minton. At first, Japan’s ceramics industry saw little expansion prior to 1780 when companies like Royal Doulton, Dudson, Spode (founded by Josiah Spode), Wedgwood and Minton began flourishing due to an abundance of fine clay and coal resources nearby. Skilled design trade was internationally-recognized and provided employment for many, especially during the 19th and 20th centuries. Unfortunately, however, manufacturing’s decline during the 1980s caused unemployment to quickly increase across the area – many factories, steelworks, collieries, pottery plants and even Shelton Bar steelworks (a leading producer of high-grade steel used to construct locomotives and rolling stock in England) closed down resulting in many more layoffs and unemployment in general in that city.<\/p>\n

Hanley, the city center, houses the Potteries Shopping Center and numerous high street chain stores, making it the main commercial hub of the Six Towns which united to form Stoke-on-Trent in 1910. Bus services connect Hanley with other cities within Staffordshire including Stoke-on-Trent itself while John Street now features its new central bus station which opened for business in March 2013. In addition, National Express coaches serve various destinations nationwide.<\/p>\n

Hanley offers several theatres, such as the Regent Theatre and Victoria Hall (which can accommodate 1,600 seats). There are also restaurants and cafes, along with shopping malls like Intu Potteries Shopping Center. Hanley boasts plenty of green spaces like Saxonvale Park and Shelton Parks for relaxation.<\/p>\n

Recently, there has been an initiative to drop the name Hanley from official publications and signs in favor of “Stoke-on-Trent City Centre.” This decision has caused consternation from residents of Hanley who view it as losing its identity; similarly other towns within Stoke-on-Trent feel Hanley is being promoted above them.<\/p>\n

Hanley serves as the main administrative centre in Staffordshire. For police, fire, and ambulance services within Hanley itself, Severn Trent provides this essential service; furthermore there are police stations located within Hanley itself as well as in Longton and Burslem – not forgetting an impressive combined court centre which can also be found here!<\/p>\n

Shawport<\/h2>\n

Stoke-on-Trent is a city located in Staffordshire, England, that is best known for its pottery industry – known as The Potteries – as well as hosting Michelin’s large tyre manufacturing facility. Many popular attractions can be found near its north, such as Elizabethan Ford Green Hall and Smallthorne Farm Museum; Waterworld indoor swimming complex at Festival Park near Hanley also provide children’s attractions.<\/p>\n

As of 1910, Stoke-upon-Trent had become a polycentric urban area after six originally separate towns came together under one umbrella to form it. The name for the whole was taken from its initial settlement, Stoke-upon-Trent – where an administration centre and railway station was situated – although all six constituent towns serve as major centers of employment; Hanley became its main commercial centre; other significant employers include Michelin Tyre Company as well as numerous distribution centres.<\/p>\n

Most of the population lives in terraced houses. Unfortunately, due to a decline in traditional manufacturing industries such as Shelton Bar steelworks and other industrial sites that closed, many low-skilled workers are unemployed in this city.<\/p>\n

City residents enjoy numerous parks and are well-served by bus routes and rail, with stations at Hanley, Longton, Bucknall and Shelton. Hanley City Council oversees education, social services and libraries while its local authority boasts a mayor\/council-manager executive arrangement.<\/p>\n

Stoke-on-Trent is an outstanding cultural and sporting center. Home to numerous museums and galleries as well as orchestra and theatre performances, as well as football clubs and cricket grounds – Stoke-on-Trent offers something for every culture enthusiast and sports enthusiast in one convenient package! It’s also a prime shopping and leisure location.<\/p>\n

Stafford is an important cultural and educational hub, home to Staffordshire University (formerly Staffordshire Polytechnic) as its flagship university and Keele University as an independent one. There are also a number of public museums such as Potteries Museum & Art Gallery in Hanley as well as three theatres and concert venues; Keele is part of its vicinity as is also an independent university located nearby; both are members of European Cities of Culture network with strong performing arts scenes in and around their respective towns.<\/p>\n

Fenton<\/h2>\n

Stoke-on-Trent may be known for ceramics, but it also boasts many other tourist attractions. Notable attractions include Hanley’s Potteries Museum and Art Gallery; Etruria Industrial Museum on Caldon Canal; Gladstone Pottery Museum located within an old potbank at Longton; Elizabethan Ford Green Hall as well as cultural institutions like Etruria Industrial Museum onsite on Caldon Canal; Gladstone Pottery Museum located within an abandoned potbank at Longton; Elizabethan Ford Green Hall are just a few notable cultural sites found within this region; Trentham Gardens provides one of Britain’s premier outdoor attractions while Festival Park near Hanley offers another tourist draw with its waterworld indoor swimming complex complex near Hanley.<\/p>\n

The Staffordshire Historical Records Centre at the Central Library in Stoke-on-Trent houses many historic documents related to its area, such as log books, admission registers and committee minutes from various schools in Stoke-on-Trent. Furthermore, records belonging to local Wesleyan Methodist, Primitive Methodist and Methodist New Connexion churches and circuits that give insight into lives and beliefs of working people are kept here as are records related to poor law unions as well as two district boards.<\/p>\n

Stoke-on-Trent is one of the few cities created through federating six distinct towns – Burslem, Fenton, Hanley, Longton and Tunstall – that had all risen from small hilltop villages into bustling industrial centres based on their mineral wealth. Since it became part of North Staffordshire in 1910, its borders have expanded further still to encompass parts such as Norton-in-the-Moors, Smallthorne Meir Weston Coyney.<\/p>\n

Hanley is one of the few English districts with an elected mayor and was among a select few that used the council-manager executive system until it was abolished by a referendum in 2008. Josiah Wedgwood, one of England’s premier 18th century potters, lived here. Additionally, Arnold Bennett was born here and used the landscape of Hanley as inspiration in his works set within the Potteries region.<\/p>\n

Stoke-on-Trent’s main theater, the 1,603-seat Regent Theatre, draws crowds each week. There are also other theaters, concert halls and clubs within its borders; as well as several museums that pay homage to its industrial past; including one dedicated solely to pottery from Wedgwood factory production – not forgetting an abundance of public parks for residents to relax in!<\/p>\n