Prosperous WM draper and mercer of Sunderland. As a local preacher he pioneered Methodist expansion in the vast Sunderland Circuit and was largely responsible for the establishment of Sunday Schools in Sunderland in 1786. In the troubled years after John Wesley's death he steered a middle course and worked hard for reconciliation, befriending Alexander Kilham but retaining his own loyalty to WM. He was actively involved in drafting the Plan of Pacification. A man of culture, steeped in Puritan theology, he was the author of tracts and other religious literature. He owned a large library and promoted libraries in Sunderland. He was a 'father and friend' to the young local preacher James Everett and encouraged the education of local preachers in general.
His son Michael Longridge (b. 1785) joined his uncle, Thomas Longridge, at the Bedlington Iron Works and became known as a railway engineer. His other son George William Longridge (b.1788?) remained in Sunderland and was a supporter of Jabez Bunting.