Luton, Bedfordshire

Flower Delivery to Luton with Clare Florist

Luton is a large town situated in Bedfordshire, England and just 50km north of London. The town is home to league 2 side Luton Town Football Club who have enjoyed a history of successful spells in the top flight of the English league as well as triumph in the football league cup in 1988. They play at their Kenilworth Road stadium which has been their home since 1905.

In 1938, London Luton Airport was opened and it is now one of England’s major airports. It served as an RAF base during the Second World War. In the town is the University of Bedfordshire. Luton is proud of its Luton Carnival which is held on the May bank holiday and is reputed to be the largest one-day carnival in Europe.

In the 6th century, After the Saxons conquered Bedfordshire in the 6th century, a settlement was created by the river lea and by the 10th century, the little settlement had developed into Luton town. Its population rose from about 700-800 inhabitants to over 1,500 by the middle ages. Luton grew over the centuries with 6 watermills built in the middle Ages, a bridge built in 1797. Gas light coming in 1834 and the decline of the hat making industry for engineering industries in the 20th century. Today, due to its development Luton together with Dunstable and Houghton Regis together form the Luton/Dunstable Urban Area with a population of 258,000. For many years, the town was home to a large motor factory, Vauxhall motors factory. The head office is still situated in the town. Car production at the plant started in 1905 and ended in 2002. It was the end of an era for Luton town although the town continued its prosperity.

ATTRACTIONS

Stockwood Discovery Centre

Initially known as the Stockwood Craft Museum, Stockwood Discovery Centre is one of two free admission museums in Luton. The discovery centre displays several collections of Local Social History, Geology, Archaeology as well as Crafts. The Mossman Collection is the biggest horse drawn carriages collection in Europe and it is housed in the Stockwood Discovery Centre.

Outside the centre are extensive gardens which include the Period Gardens, the Elizabeth Knot Garden and the Victory Garden which were created by the Luton Council from the mid-1980’s onward. In 2007, re-development work brought the building of the Sensory Garden, World Garden and the Medicinal Garden. Stockwood Discovery Centre offer venue hire for weddings, corporate events, adult learning courses and so on. Thomas Wyatt Bagshawe is a notable historian from Luton whose collectioon of rural crafts is also housed at the centre.

Wardown Park Museum

Located at Old Bedford Road in Luton is the Wardown Park Museum which is situated in the beautifully landscaped Wardown Park, on the outskirt of Luton town centre. At the museum are different display which includes the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment Gallery and the Luton Life Gallery. There are temporary exhibitions a year on different subjects. Events and activities are held at the Wardown Park Museum all year round. There is a homely tearoom serving drinks and snacks as well as museum shop at the ground floor that sells souvenirs, local history publications and lots more.

Share this location:

• Twitter
• Facebook