Stoke-on-Trent is one of the most important centers of the ceramics industry in Great Britain. For centuries, the local manufactories have been producing the valued porcelain and ceramics, and the museums related to the production and craft workshops are popular tourist attractions.
The city was founded in 1910 from the merger of six adjacent centers, Stoke-on-Trent, Hanley, Burslem, Tunstall, Longton and Fenton. It took its name from the largest of them. Due to the fact that in the past these were separate localities, there is no uniform development or one compact center here. Each of the old towns creates a separate district with its own market and center of social life.
For centuries, pottery has been produced in the Stoke-on-Trent area. There are many manufactories here, which have often been in the hands of one family for generations. The most important are Wedgwood with its own large, modern tourist center, Burleigh, Morcroft and Emma Bridgewater. There are also three museums related to ceramics in the city: the Hanley Ceramics Museum and Gallery, the Etruria Industry Museum located on the Caldon Canal, and the Gladstone Ceramics Museum located in the former Longton pits.
A favorite place for locals and tourists alike in Stoke-on-Trent are the Trentham Gardens and the nearby Trentham Monkey Forest, home to 140 macaques. The area is also conducive to active tourism. Attractive places for excursions around Stoke-on-Trent include Park Hall Nature Reserve, Hartshill Park and Lake Westport.
