Dorset Gazetteer of Historic Towns and Villages

Lulworth is one of the most photographed locations on the south coast of England. The village is classic Dorset, with thatched cottages and pretty traditional inns. The harbour is a horseshoe shaped natural harbour known as Lulworth Cove.
Lulworth, Jurassic Coast, Dorset, England

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Lyme Regis is a lovely port and fishing town famous for its association with the novel, The French Lieutenant's Woman. Lyme Regis also is famous as a centre of fossil hunting for Dorset's fabled Jurassic Coast.
Lyme Regis, Jurassic Coast, Dorset, England

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The pretty village of Milton Abbas can lay good claim to being one of the first planned settlements since the days when King Alfred the Great created a series of fortified towns across the south west. While Alfred's purpose was decidedly military (he wanted to ensure that the Danes kept a safe distance), Milton Abbas owes its current location to the whim of Joseph Damer, later Lord Milton.
Milton Abbas, Dorset, England

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Poole is the largest urban conurbation in Dorset, yet the area close to the harbour is crammed with well-preserved period buildings, including Town Cellars, a collection of 15th-century warehouses. There is a lifeboat museum and an 18th-century Guildhall. In the harbour is Brownsea Island, the birthplace of the Scouting movement. Poole developed as a fishing port in the 13th century, but now most of the shipping is pleasure craft or commercial shipping.
Poole, Jurassic Coast, Dorset, England

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This small village near Dorchester was once Piddletown, but the name has morphed into Puddletown. Puddletown is located just south of the A35, 4 miles northeast of Dorchester. There has been a settlement here as far back as the Bronze Age, and by the late Saxon period it was a village under the ownership by Earl Harold.
Puddletown, Dorset, England

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Heritage Highlight: Martyn tombs in the parish church

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The view from Gold Hill, Shaftesbury, is one that is familiar to anyone who's poured over an English Tourist Board brochure. The steep cobbled street lined with uniquely individual thatched and tiled cottages looks out across the Blackmore Vale and fields broken by hedgerows in a scene that evokes the best of traditional English charm. The ruins of an abbey founded by Alfred the Great are set in a pretty walled garden. Shaftesbury is a wonderful historic town, and well worth a visit. There is an intriguing Heritage Trail for visitors, with information panels at key points around the town.
Shaftesbury, Dorset, England

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Sherborne is a gem, a historic and architectural treasure. Where else can you find a medieval abbey church, two castles, and a prestigious public school, all within walking distance? The abbey church of St Mary the Virgin was founded in the 8th century, though the current building is largely a 15th-century rebuilding. Just behind the abbey is Sherborne School, founded in 1550 on the site of a school said to have been attended by Alfred the Great. On the fringe of town is Sherborne Old Castle, a ruined 12th-century fortress partly destroyed by Parliament in the Civil War. The newer Sherborne Castle is a mansion begun by Sir Walter Raleigh in 1594.
Sherborne, Dorset, England

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A small village just northeast of Dorchester, Stinsford is best remembered as Thomas Hardy's 'Mellstock'. Hardy was born in 1840 at Higher Bockhampton, in Stinsford parish, and his birthplace is visited by thousands of people each year. Just outside the parish at Max Gate is Hardy's last home, where he died in 1929.
Stinsford, Dorset, England

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Heritage Highlight: Links to Thomas Hardy, whose heart is buried in St Michael's churchyard

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Studland is a very attractive old village situated close to the chalk cliffs between Swanage and Poole harbour, in the Isle of Purbeck. The village has a fascinating Norman church, dedicated to St Nicholas, which contains excellent gargoyles and grotesques. This is possibly the oldest church in Dorset, with a squat central tower.

Studland, Dorset, England

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Sturminster Newton is a market town on the River Stour. The town gained a charter in 1272, two centuries before the medieval six-arch bridge was built joining Sturminster to Newton. Thomas Hardy lived for a time in Sturminster Newton, and wrote much of his novel, The Return of the Native, while a resident at Riverside house. Another famous resident was William Barnes, a popular Dorset poet.
Sturminster Newton, Dorset, England

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Heritage Highlight: 17th century Sturminster Mill and the Town Bridge, c. 1500

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