Kimmeridge
Kimmeridge | ||
---|---|---|
Shire county | ||
Region | ||
Country | England | |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom | |
Post town | WAREHAM | |
Postcode district | BH20 | |
Dialling code | 01929 | |
Police | Dorset | |
Fire | Dorset and Wiltshire | |
Ambulance | South Western | |
UK Parliament | ||
Kimmeridge (
Kimmeridge is a coastal parish and its coastline forms part of the Jurassic Coast, a World Heritage Site. The coast is also part of a Site of Special Scientific Interest, and the whole parish is part of the Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Kimmeridge is the
The roughly semi-circular Kimmeridge Bay is southwest of Kimmeridge village. It is backed by low cliffs of Kimmeridge clay, and beneath the cliffs is a large wave-cut platform and a rocky shore with rock pools and attendant ecology. Kimmeridge Bay is a surfer and diver area.
History
In the
In the medieval period there were three settlements within the parish: Kimmeridge, Little Kimmeridge, and Smedmore. These each had their own rectangular strip of land stretching between the coast and Smedmore Hill. Only Kimmeridge survives as a settlement of any size.[2]
In the mid 16th century Lord Mountjoy attempted to make alum here and acquired a patent to do so, though the enterprise was unsuccessful. In the first half of the 17th century Sir William Clavell made several unsuccessful efforts to turn Kimmeridge into an industrial venture. He tried boiling seawater to make salt, using the shale as fuel as the Romans had done. He then followed in Mountjoy's footsteps and founded an alum works, though he failed to secure a patent and ran foul of alum merchants in London who had sole rights (granted by Charles I) to produce alum in England; the merchants took Clavell's property and demanded £1,000 per year, then destroyed the works and stole Clavell's cattle. Clavell took legal action but was unsuccessful. He then tried to turn Kimmeridge into a port, and finally tried to manufacture glass with assistance from Sir Robert Mansell and Abraham Bigo, but both these enterprises failed;[3] the pier which Clavell built for the port became ruinous and was destroyed by a storm in 1745.[4]
Clavell had Smedmore House built less than a mile south-east of Kimmeridge village; referring to it as his "little newe House", he moved into it on its completion in 1632. Previously Clavell lived at Barnston Manor, near the neighbouring village of Church Knowle.[4]
In the mid 19th century the shale was used a source of oil, and in 1847 an
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution stationed a lifeboat at Kimmeridge in 1868 but it was removed in 1896.[5]
In 1959 an oil well was installed above the cliffs west of Gaulter Gap, overlooking Kimmeridge Bay. Comprising a nodding donkey pump that lifts crude oil from several hundred feet below the surface, in its early years it pumped more than 100,000 gallons per week, producing a total of 200,000 tonnes between 1961 and 1974.[4]
Governance
In the United Kingdom national parliament, Kimmeridge is in the South Dorset parliamentary constituency. As of 2021[update], South Dorset's Member of Parliament (MP) is Richard Drax of the Conservative party.[6] For electoral purposes there are 24 electoral wards in the constituency;[7] Kimmeridge is in Creech Barrow ward.[8]
In local government Kimmeridge is governed by
In county council elections Kimmeridge was within the Purbeck Hills Electoral Division, one of 42 divisions that each elect councillors to Dorset County Council.[11]
Geography
Kimmeridge village is sited beside a small stream on a roughly southwest-facing slope between the English Channel coast less than 1 mile (1.6 km) to the southwest and a curving line of hills immediately to the north and east.
Kimmeridge civil parish has several protected landscape designations covering it either in whole or part. Its coastline forms part of the Jurassic Coast, a World Heritage Site that was designated in 2001 due to the global significance of its geological features and earth science interest.[14] The coast at Kimmeridge also forms part of the South Dorset Coast Site of Special Scientific Interest.[15] All of Kimmeridge parish is within the Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which is a national designation that signifies the highest level of protection in relation to landscape scenic beauty.[16][17] All the buildings in Kimmeridge village are within the Kimmeridge Conservation Area, which was created by the local planning authority in 1975 because of the historic and architectural interest of the village.[18] Over 2,000 hectares (4,900 acres) of the coast and underwater environment at Kimmeridge Bay are designated as the Purbeck Marine Wildlife Reserve, the UK's oldest Voluntary Marine Nature Reserve; although offering no legal wildlife protection, there is a visitor centre beside Kimmeridge Bay.[19][20]
Geology
The geology of Kimmeridge civil parish comprises
Kimmeridge gives its name to the Kimmeridgian, the division of the Jurassic period in which the beds were laid down, because of the quality of the cliffs and the fossils they yield. Kimmeridge is also the type locality for the Jurassic age Kimmeridge Clay formation, which is well represented in southern England, and provides one of the source rocks for hydrocarbons found in the Wessex and North Sea Basins.
The Kimmeridge Oil Field is northwest of Kimmeridge Bay. On the cliff west of the village is the Perenco "nodding donkey" oil pump which has been pumping continually since the late 1950s, making it the oldest working oil pump in the UK. The well currently yields around 65 barrels per day (10.3 m3/d) from the Middle Jurassic strata that lie around 1,150 feet (350 m) below the cliff.[22][23] The well has been operating for this long because it has tapped into a network of connected reserves; however the yield is decreasing year on year. The oil is transported by tanker to the Perenco site at Wytch Farm from whence it is piped to the main refinery on Southampton Water.[22]
Demography
In 2013 the estimated population of Kimmeridge civil parish was 90.[24]
In the
In the
Notable buildings
Within Kimmeridge parish there are twenty-five structures that have been listed by Historic England for their historic or architectural interest. None has been listed as Grade I, but Smedmore House is Grade II*.[28]
Along the shore immediately eastwards of Kimmeridge Bay (above
The
The Etches Collection
In 2014 £2.7 million was secured from the
Surfing
Kimmeridge Bay is a surfing area which breaks infrequently due to its lack of exposure to Atlantic swells, but can produce walls of water when it is 'on'. Below the cliffs to the East is 'The Ledges', with slow left- and right-hand breaking waves; the right-handers can spiral for 70 yards (64 m) or more into the bay. To the West is 'Broad Bench', within the Ministry of Defence firing range and only accessible when the ranges are open to the public.
See also
- Geology of Dorset
- Kimmeridge Bay
- Kimmeridge Ledges
- List of Dorset beaches
- Smedmore Hill Settlement
References
- ISBN 0-7134-0066-8.
- ^ a b c d "'Kimmeridge', in An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in Dorset, Volume 2, South east (London, 1970), pp. 132–135". British History Online. University of London. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
- ^ Historic England. "Clavells Glasshouse (887353)". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 15 May 2021.
- ^ ISBN 0-7091-8135-3.
- ^ Denton, Tony (2009). Handbook 2009. Shrewsbury: Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. p. 59.
- ^ "Dorset South Parliamentary constituency". Election 2015. BBC. Retrieved 10 October 2015.
- ^ "Dorset South: New Boundaries 2013 Calculation". electoralcalculus.co.uk. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 10 October 2015.
- ^ "Elections for the Creech Barrow ward". dorsetforyou.com. Dorset County Council. Retrieved 10 October 2015.
- ^ "Kimmeridge Parish Meeting". dorsetforyou.com. Dorset County Council. Retrieved 10 October 2015.
- ^ "Area profile for South East Purbeck - Dorset Council". gi.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
- ^ "Electoral division profiles 2013". dorsetforyou.com. Dorset County Council. Retrieved 10 October 2015.
- ^ a b Ordnance Survey (1981), 1:25,000 Outdoor Leisure Map No.15 (Purbeck)
- ISBN 0-7028-0327-8
- ^ "Jurassic Coast" (PDF). jurassiccoast.org. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
- ^ "South Dorset Coast". naturalengland.org.uk. Natural England. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
- ^ "Dorset Explorer". Natural England. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
- ^ "Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs)". dorsetforyou.com. Dorset County Council. 26 June 2015. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
- ^ "Conservation areas – Purbeck". dorsetforyou.com. Dorset County Council. 22 December 2014. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
- ^ "Purbeck Marine Wildlife Reserve". dorsetwildlifetrust.org. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
- ^ "Purbeck Marine Wildlife Reserve & Fine Foundation Marine Centre". dorsetwildlifetrust.org. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
- ^ West, Ian (8 May 2014). "Kimmeridge Bay, Dorset". Southampton University. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
- ^ a b "Wytch Farm". Archived from the original on 29 December 2008. Retrieved 8 October 2015.
- ^ Natural England – England's Geology – Dorset
- ^ "Parish Population Data". Dorset County Council. 20 January 2015. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
- ^ "Kimmeridge Parish Profile". dorsetcc.gov.uk / Wayback machine. Archived from the original on 13 March 2006. Retrieved 12 October 2015.
- ^ "Area: Steeple (Parish). Dwellings, Household Spaces and Accommodation Type, 2011 (KS401EW)". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
- ^ "Area: Steeple (Parish). Key Figures for 2011 Census: Key Statistics". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 12 October 2015.
- ^ "Listed Buildings in Kimmeridge, Dorset, England". britishlistedbuildings.co.uk. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
- ^ "Kimmeridge fossil museum given £2.7m Heritage Lottery Fund boost". BBC. 4 February 2014. Retrieved 11 October 2015.
- ^ "Kimmeridge planned fossil museum gets funding". BBC. 23 August 2013. Retrieved 11 October 2015.
- ^ "The Etches Collection Museum of Jurassic Marine Life / Home". theetchescollection.org. Retrieved 11 October 2015.
- ^ "New museum at Kimmeridge for Etches Collection of fossils". BBC. 21 October 2016. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
Further reading
- James P D (1975) ISBN 0-7221-5110-1.
- Wignall P (ed) (1995) Benthic Palaeoecology of the Late Jurassic Kimmeridge Clay of England (Special Papers in Palaeontology series), Palaeontological Association, 74pp, ISBN 0-901702-42-0.
- The Buildings of England by John Newman and Nikolaus Pevsner. Page 242. Published by Penguin Books 1972. Reprint 1975. ISBN 0-14-071044-2(references to the church).
External links
- Wytch Farm environmental award