Shropshire Routes to Roots

The Longden tour

The Longden Photo tour

Approximately six miles south-west of Shrewsbury is the village of Longden, in the parish of Pontesbury. In 1867, Longden was the scene of a brutal and notorious crime, the murder of Catherine Lewis, aged 9. Have you read Murderous Mapp, a learning theme which explores this event in Shropshire's history?

By following this photo tour, you can view the locations refered to in the Shrewsbury Chronicle article of 1868, which you can print out and read as you follow the tour. The tour follows a circular route around Longden and by printing out and following the map, you could get out into the Shropshire countryside and follow the route yourself.

We start on the road into Longden from Shrewsbury. Grid Reference: SJ443065

Catherine Lewis's school house.

The school house Larger image, in a new window [33kb]

The Tankerville Arms Larger image, in a new window [27kb]

The Tankerville Arms. Viewed from the direction of the school house. Known at the time of the murder as the Tankerville Inn. The post mortem was conducted here. Post mortems were often conducted in pubs and inns at the time.

The Tankerville Arms. Viewed from the direction of St. Ruthen's church.

Tankerville Arms, reverse Larger image, in a new window [28kb]

St. Ruthen's entrance Larger image, in a new window [44kb]

The gate to the churchyard of St. Ruthen's. Although Catherine Lewis did not attend the church she is buried in the churchyard.

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