Sturminster Newton
Sturminster Newton | |
---|---|
The White Hart, Market Cross | |
Coat of arms of Sturminster Newton Town Council | |
Location within Dorset | |
Population | 5,234 (2018) |
OS grid reference | ST786140 |
Unitary authority | |
Ceremonial county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | STURMINSTER NEWTON |
Postcode district | DT10 |
Dialling code | 01258 |
Police | Dorset |
Fire | Dorset and Wiltshire |
Ambulance | South Western |
North Dorset | |
Website | https://sturminster-newton.org.uk/ |
Sturminster Newton is a town and
The town has shops, a primary and secondary school – Sturminster Newton High School – and a school and college catering for children with Special educational needs. A market is held in the town on Mondays. One of the largest cattle markets in England used to be held here,[1] but it was closed in 1998.
The town is noted for its connections with the authors Thomas Hardy and William Barnes, and as part of the historic West Country Carnival circuit.
History
Hidden on the hill above the bridge over the river are the ruins of
Sturminster Newton is situated at a historic
The Sturminster Newton Heritage Trust runs the Sturminster Newton Mill on the south bank of the river and which has existed since at least 1016. The mill was restored in 1980 and is now a working museum watermill which is open to visitors on some days every week between the end of March and the end of September.[6] The mill resumed commercial production of flour in 2020.[7]
The town centre is built in a mixture of styles, including 17th- and 18th-century
The town is set in the vale on which Thomas Hardy based his fictional Vale of the little dairies (in his Tess of the d'Urbervilles) and Sturminster had the largest cattle market in Europe, which stood close to the town centre until it was closed and demolished in 1997.[10]
Governance
Sturminster Newton electoral ward elects one member to Dorset Council. The town also has a town council of 11 members.[11]
In the UK parliament, Sturminster is in the North Dorset parliamentary constituency which is currently represented by Simon Hoare of the Conservative party.[12]
Geography
Sturminster Newton civil parish covers about 4,550 acres (1,840 hectares)[13] at an elevation of 45 to 119 metres (148 to 390 feet),[14][15] with the highest ground being in the southeast.
The town is situated on a
The geology of the parish comprises
To the southeast of the town are Girdlers Coppice and Piddles Wood, areas of mature woodland that are designated as sites of special scientific interest.
Demography
In the 2011 census the town's civil parish—which also includes the small settlements of Bagber, Broad Oak and Puxey— had 2,016 dwellings,[16] 1,910 households and a population of 4,292.[17]
Culture
Sturminster Newton is the home of the annual
The Exchange, a community arts and conference centre, on Old Market Hill, was built on the site of the old cattle market. It was officially opened by Julian Fellowes in December 2007 and provides a venue for music concerts, drama and other events.[19]
The
Sturminster Newton United F.C., founded in 1871, play in the Dorset Premier Football League.
Media
Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC West and ITV West Country. Television signals are received from the Mendip TV transmitter,[20] BBC South and ITV Meridian can also be received from the Rowridge TV transmitter.[21]
Local radio stations are
The Dorset Echo is the local newspaper that serves the town.
International relations
Twin towns
Sturminster Newton is
- Montebourg, Normandy, France
Notable people
- Keith Kyle (1925–2007), writer, broadcaster and historian, was born in the town
- Bryan "Badger" Goss (born 1940), Motocross rider
- Mark Price, Baron Price (born 1961), UK Minister of Trade and Investment and former managing director of Waitrose, lives in the town.[23]
- William Barnes (1801–1886)[citation needed]
- Thomas Hardy (1840–1928) and his wife Emma lived in the town from 1876 to 1878, and he wrote his 1878 The Return of the Native during this time.[24]
- Eden Paul (1865–1944), physician, translator, communist activist, was born in the town[25]
References
- ^ "Sturminster Newton Tourist Information at iknow-dorset.co.uk". Archived from the original on 24 August 2009. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
- ISBN 1-85455-065-9
- ^ "The Museum, SNHT". Sturminster Newton Heritage Trust. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
- ^ 'Sturminster Newton', in An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in Dorset, Volume 3, Central (London, 1970), pp. 269–286. University of London. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
- ISBN 1-874336-51-2
- ^ "Working Mill in Sturminster Newton, SNHT". Sturminster Newton Heritage Trust. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
- ^ "One-Thousand-Year-Old Mill Resumes Production to Supply Flour Amid Pandemic, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 May 2020". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
- ^ "The Creamery at Sturminster Newton". cheesefestival.co.uk. Archived from the original on 28 December 2011. Retrieved 31 January 2012.
- ISBN 1-874336-96-2
- ^ Baker, Stephen (August 2012). "Sturminster Newton: anything but a new town". Dorset Life Magazine. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
- ^ "The Council". Sturminster Newton Town Council. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
- ^ "Dorset North Parliamentary constituency". Election 2015. BBC. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
- ^ a b "'Sturminster Newton', in An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in Dorset, Volume 3, Central (London, 1970), pp. 269–286". British History Online. University of London. Retrieved 7 February 2015.
- ^ Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 Pathfinder Series, sheet ST 61/71 (Sherborne and Sturminster Newton), published 1985
- ISBN 0-319-21281-5
- ^ "Area: Sturminster Newton (Parish). Dwellings, Household Spaces and Accommodation Type, 2011 (KS401EW)". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
- ^ "Area: Sturminster Newton (Parish). Key Figures for 2011 Census: Key Statistics". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
- ^ "UK Boogie Woogie Festival". UK Boogie Woogie Festival. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
- ^ "Our story". The Exchange. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
- ^ "Full Freeview on the Mendip (Somerset, England) transmitter". UK Free TV. 1 May 2004. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
- ^ "Full Freeview on the Rowridge (Isle Of Wight, England) transmitter". UK Free TV. 1 May 2004. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
- ^ "Abbey 104". Retrieved 17 October 2023.
- ^ "Price wars: Mark Price on Christmas, convenience and cafés". Retrieved 9 November 2017.
- ^ "Curiosities of Sturminster Newton – Dorset Life – The Dorset Magazine". www.dorsetlife.co.uk. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
- ^ Labour Who's Who. London: Labour Publishing Company. 1924. p. 130.