Coordinates: 51°23′46″N 0°18′17″E / 51.3962°N 0.3046°E / 51.3962; 0.3046

Longfield
Longfield  Longfield shown within Kent
OS grid reference	TQ604688
Civil parish	Longfield and New Barn
District	Dartford
Shire county	Kent
Region	South East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Longfield
Postcode district	DA3
Dialling code	01474
Police	Kent
Fire	Kent
Ambulance	South East Coast
EU Parliament	South East England
UK Parliament	Dartford
List of places: UK • England • Kent

Longfield is a village in the Dartford borough of Kent. It is located four miles south east of Dartford and near Gravesend. It contains several shops, a pub, and a 14th century church. It is recorded in the Domesday Book and the Anglo-Saxon charters of 964-995.

  History

The place in Kent is recorded as 'Langanfelda' in the Saxon Charters of 964-995, and as 'Langafel' in the Domesday Book of 1086.^[1]

It had been proposed by town planner Patrick Abercrombie as part of the Greater London Plan in the mid 1940's to build a New Town in the Longfield area - though this was rejected.^[2]

  Geography

Longfield is located four miles south east of Dartford and near Gravesend. It is contiguous with the village of Hartley to the south.

The villages of New Barn and Longfield are within and give their names to the civil parish of Longfield and New Barn which also covers the settlement of Longfield Hill. Longfield is the ancient village, situated on the road between Dartford and Meopham. New Barn is larger in population than Longfield, although has little in the way of services, being a recent development and purely a residential location.

  Governance

Longfield fell within the Hundred of Axtane.^[3] The Local Government Act 1972 made the village part of the Sevenoaks of Kent in 1974. It was transferred to the borough of Dartford in 1987.^[4]

Dr Howard Stoate (Labour) had been the MP since 1997, but resigned in 2010.^[5] He was succeeded by Gareth Johnson at the 2010 General Election.

  Economy

The village has a shopping area consisting of a local baker and butcher, two local supermarkets, a post office, chemist, estate agents, hair-dressers, an antiques shop, various restaurants and take-aways, an undertakers and a country market on Fridays.^[6]

  Culture

There is one pub in Longfield, the Railway Tavern,^[7]. Another, The Wheatsheaf, a 15th century thatched pub, outside the village on the B255 road to Bluewater.^[8] unfortunately closed down in 2011. The Long Valley Club and the Hartley Country Club are club-based venues restricted to paid membership. Other pubs in the area include the Green Man on Longfield Hill, the White Swan near Ash and the Rising Sun in Fawkham.

The church is dedicated to St Mary Magdalene, and was built in 1343.^[9]

  Transport

The town is served by Longfield railway station which is operated by Southeastern with services to London and the Medway Towns.

The railway was built in 1861, but Longfield station did not open until 1872. This building was replaced in 1902 after a fire, and rebuilt in 1971. The line was electrified just before the war, but it was many years before the company could be persuaded to set up safety fencing. Many people used to walk to Longfield Halt in Whitehill Road to catch the train to Gravesend West Street.

Longfield suffers from heavy traffic and queues daily.

  References

  External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Longfield

• the Parish Council website
• Hartley website

Towns and villages in the Borough of Dartford, Kent, England Bean Betsham Darenth Dartford Greenhithe Hawley Hook Green Joydens Wood Longfield New Barn Northfleet Green Southfleet Stone Sutton-at-Hone Swanscombe Temple Hill Wilmington List of places in Kent