Stalbridge
| Stalbridge | |
| Dorset | |
|---|---|
 St Mary's, Stalbridge | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | ST735177 |
| Location: | 50°57’36"N, 2°22’48"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 2,579 (2001) |
| Post town: | Sturminster Newton |
| Postcode: | DT10 |
| Dialling code: | 01963 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Dorset |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
North Dorset |
| Website: | http://www.stalbridgetowncouncil.gov.uk/ |
Stalbridge is a village in Dorset, lying in the Blackmore Vale in the north of the county, near the border with Somerset. In 2001 the town had a population of 2,579. The nearest towns are Sturminster Newton, four miles south east, Sherborne, six miles west, and Shaftesbury, seven miles northeast.
It claims the status of a town simply by virtue of its parish council calling itself a town council since 1992.
The town sits on a low limestone ridge, one mile west of the River Stour, with the A357 road passing through. The settlement became a town in April 1992.[1]
Though relatively small, Stalbridge is quite independent, with its own small supermarket, newsagent, electronics store, GP Surgery and many other services, reflecting its catchment area of surrounding farms and hamlets. The town is also home to the local free newspaper, the Blackmore Vale Magazine.
History
There was a settlement near Stalbridge in Roman times. The town has a 15th-century church with a 19th-century tower, dedicated to Saint Mary and restored to designs by T. H. Wyatt,[2] in 1878, which overlooks the town from a hill. The town has had market rights since the time of King George I, though it has not held a regular market for many years.
In the town centre stands a 30-foot tall market cross, said to be the finest in the country.[3]
In 1727, Sir James Thornhill erected an obelisk in the park to honour the accession of King George II.[3]
The scientist Robert Boyle called Stalbridge home and conducted several of his experiments at Stalbridge House. Douglas Adams wrote much of "The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy" in the town. The artist Sir James Thornhill lived just south of the town, in Thornhill Park, which he bought in 1725. The house is believed to have been originally owned by Sir Walter Raleigh in the 16th century.
From September 1863 Stalbridge was served by Stalbridge railway station on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway, with trains to Bath and Bournemouth. During Second World War a Ministry of Food depot was situated here. The last train ran on 7 March 1966, and most of the tracks, station and goods yard have been replaced, though tracks still cross the road.[4]
Stalbridge House
In 1618 Mervyn Tucher (or Audley), 2nd Earl of Castlehaven, who had inherited Stalbridge Park from his father, decided to build a mansion house on his Stalbridge estate. He enclosed an area used as common land to the northwest of the church, moving tenant farmers out, and built a Jacobean style mansion, the fifth largest house in Dorset.
In 1631 the earl's eldest son James brought a case against him for unnatural practices, and he was subsequently executed.
James sold the house to Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork. After his father's death, the scientist Robert Boyle became Lord of the Manor, and the house was his residence between 1644 and 1655. It was here that he conducted many of his experiments.[2]
At some point during the house's history a six-foot-high stone wall was built around the boundary of Stalbridge Park. There is some argument as to when and why the wall was built. It may have been commissioned by Castlehaven as a status symbol, work for rance|French |prisoners of the Napoleonic Wars, or as work for local labourers in times of high unemployment.
By 1822 the house was in poor repair and the current owner, the Marquess of Anglesey, had it demolished.[5] By 1827 all that remained was the raised area where it had stood. The stone was sold off and much of it is in use elsewhere in the town, including the large farm house which now stands in the park.
There are many popular local myths and ghost stories about the demise of the house, mostly involving a fire destroying the house.
Stalbridge Park features in Thomas Hardy's Wessex novels as "Stapleford Park".[5]
Media
- Blackmore Vale Magazine
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Stalbridge) |
References
- ↑ Stalbridge Town Council, 2005. Introduction. Accessed 2005-12-30.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Michael Pitt-Rivers, 1966. Dorset. London: Faber & Faber.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 The Dorset Page, "Stalbridge."
- ↑ Mike Oakley, 2001. Dorset Railway Stations. Wimborne: Dovecote Press ISBN 1-874336-96-2
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Denys Kay-Robinson, 1984. The Landscape of Thomas Hardy. Exeter, Webb & Bower ISBN 0-86350-020-X
