Melbury Osmond
| Melbury Osmond | ||
|---|---|---|
Shire county | ||
| Region | ||
| Country | England | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom | |
| Post town | Dorchester | |
| Postcode district | DT2 | |
| Police | Dorset | |
| Fire | Dorset and Wiltshire | |
| Ambulance | South Western | |
| UK Parliament | ||
Melbury Osmond is a village and
2011 census the parish had a population of 199.[1]
The major part of Melbury Osmond village lies on a
cul-de-sac lane which from the church descends past cottages to a stream and ford. The attractive appearance of the village has been noted by commentators: it has been described as "a calendarsmith's dream of thatched cottages"[5] and in 1906 Sir Frederick Treves wrote that it was "the most charming village in these Western backwoods".[4]
In its history the village has been involved in the trade of plated buckles and horn buttons, and the manufacture of
Rough Music" ceremonies.[6]
There are 34 listed buildings and structures within the parish, including the Grade II* Old Rectory and the Grade I parish church.[7]
Thomas Hardy's mother lived in Melbury Osmond as a child, and she was married in the church.[8] The village appears as "Little Hintock" in Hardy's novel The Woodlanders, in which the heroine's name is "Grace Melbury". Hardy also incorporated a legend about the Duke of Monmouth taking refuge in one of the village's cottages into his short story "The Duke's Reappearance".[8]
Notes
- ^ a b "Neighbourhood Statistics. Area: Melbury Osmond (Parish). Key Figures for 2011 Census: Key Statistics". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 29 September 2013.
- ISBN 0 7090 0844 9.
- ^ West Dorset District Council, Holiday and Tourist Guide, c.1983, p13
- ^ a b c Treves, Sir F., Highways and Byways in Dorset, Macmillan, 1906, pp322-323
- ISBN 0 7091 8135 3.
- ^ Dewar, H. S. L. (1962). "The Dorset Ooser". Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society. 84: 178–180.
- ^ "Listed Buildings in Melbury Osmond, Dorset, England". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 10 July 2012.
- ^ a b Ken Ayres (October 2007). "Melbury Osmond". Dorset Life. Retrieved 29 September 2013.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Melbury Osmond.