W. Hylton Dyer Longstaffe

William Hylton Dyer Longstaffe (2 September 1826 – 4 February 1898) was an antiquarian, historian and solicitor from Norton, North East England. He is best known for his antiquarian research, particularly into the fields of numismatics, church history and archaeology, and the history of the town of Darlington. He was vice-president of the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne as well an editor of the journal Archaeologia Aeliana and editor for the Surtees Society.

Early life Longstaffe was born in Norton, near Stockton-on-Tees on 2 September 1826. His father, William Hilton Longstaffe (1792–1842), was a surgeon. His mother was Elizabeth Dyer Franks (1802–1881), and through his mother he was the a descendant of the poet John Dyer (1699–1757). Upon the death of his father on 1 November 1842 he left school and was apprenticed in York to a law stationer, later moving to Thirsk, and in 1845 to Darlington under the supervision of John Shields Peacock. In 1850 Longstaffe moved to Gateshead and joined the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne. In 1861 he was a co-founder of the Architectural and Archaeological Society of Durham and Northumberland.

Professional work When Longstaffe moved to Gateshead he worked as a managing clerk for the law firm Messers. Kell & Apedaile. He signed the roll of attorneys in January 1857. Upon the retirement of Apedaile, Longstaffe became a joint partner of Kell & Longstaff. In 1862, after the death of William Kell, Longstaffe became the sole owner of the business. He was active in a number of local Gateshead institutions, including Gateshead Mechanics Institute for which he was secretary from 1864-1868, and honorary secretary of Gateshead Dispensary from 1862-1875.