Long () is a commune in the

Somme __NOTOC__ Somme or The Somme may refer to: Places *Somme (department), a department of France * Somme, Queensland, Australia * Canal de la Somme, a canal in France *Somme (river), a river in France Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Somme'' (book), ...

department in

Hauts-de-France Hauts-de-France (; ; ), also referred to in English as Upper France, is the northernmost region of France, created by the territorial reform of French regions in 2014, from a merger of Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardy. Its prefecture is Lille. ...

in northern

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Geography

Long is situated on the D32 and the D112 crossroads, some southeast of

Abbeville Abbeville (; ; ) is a commune in the Somme department and in Hauts-de-France region in northern France. It is the of one of the arrondissements of Somme. Located on the river Somme, it was the capital of Ponthieu. Geography Location A ...

in a part of the valley of the

that is filled by lakes and ponds.

Population

Places of interest

Church of St. Jean-Baptiste

The first church was built here in the 12th century and must have been quite small compared to the present-day building. Another church replaced the original in the 15th century. During the 19th century, as the population of the town had grown to 1800 people, another church had to be built, though the bell-tower of the original was incorporated within the new building, which was completed in 1851.

The hydro-electric plant

In 1900, the municipal council decided to build an electricity generating plant, powered by the waters of the Somme. Inaugurated three years later on 7 June 1903, the three

turbine A turbine ( or ) (from the Greek , ''tyrbē'', or Latin ''turbo'', meaning vortex) is a rotary mechanical device that extracts energy from a fluid flow and converts it into useful work. The work produced can be used for generating electrical ...

s provided electricity at 120 volts DC for the entire village, at little charge. It also provided running water to every home too.
By 1968, the world had caught up and overtaken the generators at Long. A 220volt supply from the national grid ( and, for the first time, electricity bills ) arrived in the commune. The plant continued to pump water until 1974. The building now houses a museum.

The Château at Long

The 18th-century château, in pink brick and white stone, with a

mansard roof A mansard or mansard roof (also called French roof or curb roof) is a multi-sided gambrel-style hip roof characterised by two slopes on each of its sides, with the lower slope at a steeper angle than the upper, and often punctured by dormer wi ...

, was built on the site of an earlier

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

castle.
During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...