Winterbourne Steepleton

Winterbourne Abbas is a village and civil parish in south west Dorset, England, situated in a valley on the A35 road 5 miles (8.0 km) west of Dorchester. In the 2011 census the parish had a population of 355.

Eggerton Hundred or Eggardon Hundred was a hundred in the county of Dorset, England, containing the following parishes: Askerswell Hooke Long Bredy Powerstock (part) Winterbourne Abbas Wraxall

The Nine Stones, also known as the Devil's Nine Stones, the Nine Ladies, or Lady Williams and her Dog, is a stone circle located near to the village of Winterbourne Abbas in the southwestern English county of Dorset. Archaeologists believe that it was likely erected during the Bronze Age. The Nine Stones is part of a tradition of stone circle construction that spread through much of Great Britain, Ireland, and Brittany between 3,300 and 900 BCE, during the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age. The stone circle tradition was accompanied by the construction of timber circles and earthen henges, reflecting a growing emphasis on circular monuments. The purpose of such rings is unknown, although archaeologists speculate that the stones represented supernatural entities for the circle's builders. At least nine of these stone circles are known to have been constructed near modern Dorset. They are smaller than those found elsewhere in Great Britain and are typically built from sarsen stone. Located in the bottom of a narrow valley, the Nine Stones circle has a diameter of 9.1 by 7.8 metres (29 feet 10 inches by 25 feet 7 inches). It consists of nine irregularly spaced sarsen megaliths, with a small opening on its northern side. Two of the stones on the northwestern side of the monument are considerably larger than the other seven. This architectural feature has parallels with various stone circles in southwestern Scotland, and was potentially a deliberate choice of the circle's builders, to whom it may have had symbolic meaning. Antiquarians like John Aubrey and William Stukeley first took an interest in the site during the eighteenth century. It later received archaeological attention, although it has not been excavated. Local folklore has grown up around the circle, associating it with the Devil and with children petrified into rock. The Nine Stones are regarded as a sacred site by local Druids, who perform religious ceremonies there. The circle is adjacent to the A35 road and encircled by trees. The site is owned by English Heritage and is open without charge to visitors.

Grimstone is a hamlet at the confluence of Sydling Water and the River Frome in the western part of the civil parish of Stratton, Dorset. The Great Western Railway opened Grimstone and Frampton railway station and Grimstone Viaduct in 1857 and British Railways closed the station in 1966. The hamlet is the home of Manor Foods, a catering company located at Manor Farm.Grimstone's common lands were not enclosed until 1907.

The Hardy Monument is a 72-foot-high (22 m) monument on the summit of Black Down in Dorset, erected in 1844 by public subscription in memory of Vice Admiral Sir Thomas Hardy, flag captain of Admiral Lord Nelson at the Battle of Trafalgar. Admiral Hardy lived in Portesham and his family owned the Portesham estate which stretched from the middle of Portesham to Black Down. The site for the monument was chosen because the Hardy family wanted a monument which could be used as a landmark for shipping. The monument has been shown on navigational charts since 1846 and is visible from a distance of 60 miles (97 km). The monument is situated on Black Down, a hill overlooking the English Channel near Portesham in Dorset, England, on the road between Abbotsbury and Martinstown. It was restored in 1900 by his descendants and bought in 1938 by the National Trust for the sum of £15. The monument was designed to look like a spyglass, as Admiral Hardy would have used on board ship. Its eight corners are aligned with the compass points. Viewed from the ground the corner to the right of the lightning conductor points due south. The bench mark on the northwest face denotes the altitude of Black Down at 780 feet (240 m). From the top of the monument at a height of 850 feet (260 m) above sea level it is possible on a clear day to see the coast from Start Point, Devon to St. Catherine's Point on the Isle of Wight, both of which are 56 miles (90 km) distant. To the north can be seen Pen Hill in the Mendip Hills which is 38 miles (61 km) away. The monument was closed to the public in 2009 when major renovation work was required. This work was completed in January 2012. To date, the monument is regularly opened during the peak season, where visitors can climb the 120 steps to the viewpoint at the top. The heathland area around the monument was in 1984 designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest, when the Nature Conservancy Council decided that the geology of the area was very rare. The monument was designated as a Grade II listed building in 1956.Adjacent to the monument is a stone seat erected in memory of Lt Col William Digby Oswald who was killed on the Somme in 1916.

Black Down is a hill on the South Dorset Ridgeway about 2 kilometres north-northeast of the village of Portesham in the county of Dorset, England and around 5 kilometres from the coast. The treeless summit of Black Down is a popular viewing point, crowned by the 72 foot high Hardy Monument built in 1844 in memory of Vice-Admiral Sir Thomas Masterman Hardy who was Admiral Nelson's Flag Captain at the Battle of Trafalgar.From the top there are views of the Fleet and Chesil Beach as well as the South Dorset Downs. On a fine day The Needles may be visible, some 50 miles away.The site is owned by the National Trust.

Winterborne St Martin, commonly known as Martinstown, is a village and civil parish in southwest Dorset, England, situated 4 miles (6.4 km) southwest of Dorchester, beside Maiden Castle. In 2013 the estimated population of the civil parish was 780. In the centre of the village is the parish church of St Martin, which dates from the 12th century and has a Norman font. Other amenities in the village include a public house, village hall and post office. Bronze Age barrows including Clandon Barrow surround the village, and Maiden Castle hillfort is nearby. The stream running through the village is a winterbourne though rarely dries out in the summer now. Winterborne St Martin is in the UK Weather Records for the Highest 24-hour total rainfall, which was recorded in the village on 18 July 1955. The total recorded was 279 mm (11 inches) in a 15-hour period. However this record was surpassed by Seathwaite in Cumbria in 2009.

The Hell Stone is a badly-restored Neolithic dolmen on Portesham Hill in Dorset, England. It is around half a mile (0.8 km) north of the village of Portesham, and approximately three-quarters of a mile (1.2 km) southeast of the Valley of Stones.

St Bartholomew's Chapel is a Church of England chapel in Corton, near Weymouth, Dorset, England. The chapel has early 13th century origins, with later rebuilds and a restoration of 1897. It is a Grade II* listed building.

Corton Cutting (grid reference SY637855) is a 0.24 hectare geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Dorset, England, notified in 1997. The site is listed in the Geological Conservation Review.

Clandon Barrow is a very large bowl barrow dating from the Bronze Age, which overlooks the village of Martinstown, near Dorchester in Dorset, and which lies on the same ridge as Maiden Castle, near to the Mount Pleasant henge. It was excavated by Edward Cunnington in 1882. Gold objects were found including a cup and the Clandon Lozenge. The lozenge has recently been studied along with a similar artifact from Bush Barrow (near Stonehenge). It has now been clearly demonstrated that both the form and decorative elements of these lozenges were based on geometric designs. The Clandon example was created with decagon based geometry, the Bush Barrow example was based on a hexagon.

Grimstone and Frampton railway station was a station on the Wiltshire, Somerset & Weymouth Railway, part of the Great Western Railway between Maiden Newton and Dorchester. It was in the hamlet of Grimstone which was in the parish of Stratton but also relatively close to the parish of Frampton which it was also intended to serve. It was directly south of Grimstone Viaduct.When the line opened on 20 January 1857 it was called Frampton Station but in July 1857 it changed name to Grimstone Station and in July 1858 it was renamed again to its final name of Grimstone and Frampton Station. The station became unstaffed from 11 April 1966 and closed on 3 October 1966. Refer to Mike Oakley's booklet for more details. A fatal accident occurred on Saturday 16 May 1914 when a watercress seller named Carter was killed at the station. If had been customary for him to gather watercress which was grown on the Sydling Water and then return to Dorchester to sell it. He arrived at 4:40 and was apparently to return on the 5:12 train. He left his empty baskets on the down platform and crossed to the up platform via the footbridge. Then as the 4:38 express from Weymouth passed through at 4:57 he walked onto the line and was killed instantly, despite the express sounding warning whistles as it approached the station. An inquest was held on the Monday at which it emerged that he had not gathered any watercress and despite what he had said he had not forwarded any to Dorchester. The jury recorded a verdict that he was accidentally knocked down. He was always referred to as Carter and no one knew his Christian name. However a postcard was found which had the initial F on it. His age was unknown but estimated to be about 50 and he was thought to have a sister in Ealing. He had lodged at a public house in Dorchester for some years. He was buried at Stratton Church on Tuesday 19 May 1914. The station master was Thomas Charles Olding, the engine driver was Albert Clifton Webb. The express resumed its journey after an 11-minute delay.