Longton is one of the six towns which amalgamated to form the county borough of Stoke-on-Trent in 1910, along with Hanley, Tunstall, Fenton, Burslem and Stoke-upon-Trent in Staffordshire, England.

On 14 and 15 August 1842 the prominent radical writer and poet, Thomas Cooper, spoke at a number of open-air meetings in Stoke-on-Trent in support of the local colliers entry.

Following his speech on 15 August, a number of men marched through Hanley, Shelton, Stoke, Penkhull, Fenton and Longton destroying property and encouraging others to join them.

[5] Arnold Bennett referred to Longton as Longshaw, one of the "five towns" featured in his novels set in the Staffordshire Potteries.

Founded in Longton in 1924 by Eli Belovitch and his son in law Harry Grosberg, Belstaff produced all-weather jackets for motorcyclists, and was the first company to use waxed cotton.

Longton Town Hall, which was completed in 1844 and was the local seat of government until 1910, was being stripped out by contractors when it was saved from demolition in 1986.

The kilns of the Gladstone Pottery Museum, along with others in the Longton conservation area represent a significant proportion of the national stock of the structures.

A Stoke-on-Trent Ceramic Heritage Action Zone was created with the double function of regenerating Longton and surviving bottle ovens throughout the city.