Category: Local History

Violet’s wars: the story of a Dorset heroine | Looking Back

The outstanding story of a humble Dorset woman who nursed soldiers in two world wars, and outwitted the Nazis, is told by Roger Guttridge. Few,...

Rats, fleas and Black Death (the shaping of north Dorset)

Why are so many north Dorset parish churches outside their villages? The answer is the Black Death, argues Paul Birbeck Across the Vale, there are...

The Georgian phoenix that rose from the ashes of disaster | Then and Now

When fire ripped through Blandford on June 4, 1731, it was a catastrophe for the town and a personal disaster for most of its...

When Dickens came to Sherborne | Looking Back

‘Marley was dead: to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that.’ So began the greatest occasion in Sherborne’s literary history, and there...

Child Okeford Co-op – 100 years on | Then and now

One of the commercial stories of the 20th century centres on the gradual decline of the village and corner shop as supermarkets took over...

Dorset’s first woman driver | Looking Back

She was Dorset’s first woman driver, and she documented her motoring adventures in a diary written almost 120 years ago. Roger Guttridge shares the...

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Princess Royal visits Dorset riding centre championing young people

A local equestrian centre that helps young people build confidence and life skills through horses has been praised by both the Princess Royal and...

Cerne Giant Festival returns with three-week programme

The Cerne Giant Festival returns from 18th April to 9th May, bringing three weeks of walks, talks and workshops centred on the Cerne Valley’s...

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