| At the westerly end of Chesil Beach, nestling
in the beautiful Bride Valley where the river Bride wends its way
to the sea, lies Burton Bradstock, a
pretty village of some 1,000 residents. Today, the heart of the
village is still unspoilt with pretty 16th. and 17th. century thatched
cottages clustered around the church of St.
Mary the Virgin. The main part of the church is 15th. century
although the north wall of the nave, with its two original windows,
dates back a further 100 years or so. As with most villages, Burton
Bradstock has had its share of developments of modern houses in the
last century, but its central character remains intact. The village
has a school,
a shop, post office stores, cafe on the beach, two pubs, hotel, garage,
Village Hall, Reading Room and even a library! Few modern villages can
boast so many amenities. It has an impressive range of active groups
including the Church, Women's
Institute, Royal British Legion , Village Society, Burton Bradstock
Players, Bride Valley Scout Group and Parish Council to name but a few. As part of the Millennium activities, the Parish
Council funded the creation of this village web site. In addition
to its aim of providing a wide range of useful and up-to-date information and contacts. Over the years, numerous books and articles have been
published about the village and the surrounding area.:- A preliminary
search has resulted in a useful
list of books and publications for those wishing to learn more as well as a list of local writers and their books
. |
|
A major section of this web site is History which includes over 1,000 old photographs, maps, documents and articles
plus video clips and recordings. In addition, as Burton Bradstock
lies on that part of the coast famous for its fossils, an article
has been written for the village on the Jurassic
Coast, as it relates to the village and the local area. On top
of that, a preliminary investigation into the village's
pre-history has also been obtained. The village has created
a historic walk as part of its Millennium activities. The project
entitled "Roberts'
Trail", was instigated by the Parish Council with cooperation
and some financial support from Dorset County Council and Dorset
Community Action. It has been designed around the contribution Richard
Roberts, an entrepreneur of the day, made to the village in the eighteenth
century. Roberts built two water mills in the village to swingle
(clean and ret) and spin/weave flax for a wide variety of products
that were exported all over the world. His mills were the first
of their kind in the west country, hence his initiative and foresight
firmly established Burton Bradstock as the centre for the flax swingling/processing
industry. A booklet with a map describing the trail is available
(for a small charge) at the village post office.
See "What's New"
for the latest updates on the site. Use the Sites search
engine to quickly find what you want. |
