Long Clawson is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Clawson, Hose and Harby, in the Melton district, in the county of Leicestershire, England. Situated in the Vale of Belvoir, the village is surrounded by farmland with rich soil ideal for pasture. Milk from local dairy farms is used for production of Stilton cheese, of which the Long Clawson dairy is one of the largest producers. In 1931 the civil parish had a population of 664.
Origin of the name
There is some debate about the origin of the village's name; one theory is that there were once two villages named Clawson and Claxton, which grew together and became Long Clawson. The "Long" part of the name may have arisen from it being over in length, although the main road through the village has 14 sharp bends.
History
The village is featured in the 1086 Domesday Book as Clachestone, but there is evidence of much earlier settlements. Embedded into the tarmac footpath against the wall of the Manor House is an ancient megalith. The Long Clawson Stone is approximately 3 feet long and allegedly a fragment of a larger ancient stone. The Manor House itself has an ancient fish pond that is still stocked. On 1 April 1936 it was merged with Harby and Hose to form "Clawson and Harby". Like many larger village settlements, the number of businesses in the village has declined in recent years. Once possessing five pubs, numerous small stores and traders, along with its own police presence, the village now only has one pub, the Crown and Plough] and a few shops. The community is strong and thriving, however, with a growing population. Around 100 new houses were built in the village in the early part of the 21st century and the primary school has doubled the number of its pupils. A traditional saying about Long Clawson and Hose is "There are more whores in Hose than honest women in Long Clawson"; this is thought to contain puns on the village names and items of clothing.
Religion
The village churches include the Anglican church of St Remigius, a Methodist church, and a Baptist church dating from 1845). The last two are 20th-century red brick buildings. The former Primitive Methodist chapel of 1868 is now a private residence. The parish church of Saint Remigius dates from around the 14th century. Its walls, like those of the nearby manor house, are of a local stone rich red in hue. It contains a medieval effigy of the crusader William Bozon. The church was restored in 1893 and seats 300. The present Methodist Church was opened in 1956. Methodism was introduced into the village by a Mrs Hind through her contact with the Wesleyan Society in 1797. After joining a small society at Nether Broughton, she formed a society in Long Clawson, meetings being held in the kitchen of her home. Later a licence was obtained and William Parkes's home was registered for public worship. It became known as 'The Consecrated Barn'. The first chapel was built in 1801 and in 1816 improved by the addition of a gallery. In 1840 a new chapel was built on the present site at a cost of £1100. In 1873 a schoolroom and a Minister's vestry were added. A manse was built alongside the chapel in 1887. In 1954 the chapel burnt down. A committee was formed to raise funds for a replacement and on 25 June 1955 the foundation stone for the new building was laid. The new chapel opened on 29 September 1956.
Long Clawson Dairy
One of only six dairies in England where Stilton cheese is manufactured, Long Clawson Dairy was founded in 1911 by 12 farmers from the Vale of Belvoir. The company has prospered and today is supplied by over 40 farms, all within Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire or Derbyshire, as the Protected Designation of Origin for Stilton requires. Its supplier farms range in production between 350,000 and over 4 million litres of milk per year. The dairy employs about 200 people and makes an annual 6,700 tonnes of cheese in 60 varieties. Exports account for about 20 per cent of its sales, which amounted to some £54 million in 2008. Long Clawson Dairy was awarded a total of 11 trophies at the International Cheese Awards 2011, which took place at the Nantwich Show in Cheshire, including Reserve Champion UK and Reserve Supreme Champion for the dairy's 'Blue Stilton'.
