West Chelborough

Halstock is a village and civil parish in the county of Dorset in southern England, situated approximately five miles (8.0 km) south of Yeovil in Somerset. It lies on the route of the ancient Harrow Way. In the 2011 census the parish had a population of 546.Halstock formerly constituted a liberty, containing only the parish itself. It was the site of the martyrdom of Saint Juthwara (Juthware), and a Romano-British Villa excavated between 1967 and 1985.The village formerly had two inns, "The New Inn" (New Inn Farm), which closed in the late 1950s, and the unusually named "The Quiet Woman" (usually taken as a reference to St Juthware) In July 2012, Halstock's Parish church of St Mary was rededicated by the Bishop of Sherborne to become "St Juthware and St Mary", in recognition of the local tradition. Much of the church was rebuilt in 1770, with only the 15th-century west tower not being affected. The nave and chancel were rebuilt again on separate dates in the 19th century.Halstock lies within an electoral ward of the same name, which also contains several nearby parishes including Corscombe, Evershot and Hilfield. The population of this ward at the 2011 census was 1,848. This ward is one of 32 that comprise the West Dorset parliamentary constituency, which is currently represented in the UK national parliament by the Conservative Chris Loder, who succeeded Oliver Letwin in 2019.

Aunt Mary's Bottom (grid reference ST546023) is an 8.62 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Dorset, England notified in 1991.

Corscombe is a village and civil parish in the English county of Dorset, in the Dorset Council administrative area. The parish includes the small settlements of Benville and Toller Whelme to the south and in the 2011 census had a population of 445.Corscombe village is sited "into hollows and along sunken lanes" on the northern scarp slope of the Dorset Downs, approximately 8 miles (13 km) south-south-west from the town of Yeovil in Somerset. Evidence of early human occupation within the parish includes lynchets and, south of the village, three standing stones.On the higher ground in the village stands the 15th-century parish church of St. Mary, which was restored in 1875–7. In 1905 Sir Frederick Treves described the church as a "handsome building" with an "exceedingly fine" situation. Nearby Corscombe Court dates from the 13th century and is partially surrounded by a moat. It has a 15th-century tithe barn which was once used by the monks of Sherborne Abbey.About 2 kilometres to the south of Corscombe village, across the A356, is Toller Down, one of the highest hills in Dorset, with good views of the surrounding countryside. The musician Polly Jean Harvey is a former resident.

Pugin Hall is a private house, designed as a rectory by Augustus Pugin and built in 1846–1847 in Rampisham, Dorset, England. The house is a Grade I listed building, the top category, 'of highest significance'.

Rampisham Down is a chalk hill in the Dorset Downs, eight miles north west of Dorchester in west Dorset, England. The highest part of the hill is 221 metres (720 feet). To the north east of the hill is the Frome valley and the village of Rampisham, to the south west is the Hooke valley and the village of Hooke. The A356 road between Dorchester and Crewkerne cuts across the down.

Toller Down is one of the highest hills in the county of Dorset, England. It stands 252 metres (827 feet) high and is just 200 metres west of the main A356 road from Dorchester to Crewkerne. It is part of the Dorset Downs. Its prominence of just under 100 metres classifies it as a sub-HuMP.The summit is about 2 kilometres south of the village of Corscombe.There are standing stones (the Hore Stones) just north of the summit by the junction of the A356 with a minor road.

Rampisham ( or ) is a village and civil parish in the county of Dorset in southern England, situated approximately 11 miles (18 km) northwest of the county town Dorchester. The village is sited on greensand in a valley surrounded by the chalk hills of the Dorset Downs. The parish includes the hamlet of Uphall northwest of the main village. Dorset County Council's 2013 mid-year estimate for the population of Rampisham parish is 110. The principal means of making a living is agricultural, mainly grain production.

Hooke Court is a 17th-century manor house in the parish of Hooke in Dorset, England. It is a Grade II* listed building built around the time of the English Civil War. Standing in about 6 hectares (14 acres) of mature park and woodland, Hooke Court is on the outskirts of Hooke, a village in rural Dorset. It lies at the foot of Warren Hill. In the Civil War it was damaged by fire by Roundheads but repaired in 1647 by the Duke of Bolton. There had previously been medieval buildings on the site. Hooke Court was previously a boarding school for boys with educational, emotional or behavioural problems, from 1946 to 1992. Saint Francis School for Boys was run and managed by Society of Saint Francis. Hooke Court is today used as a residential study centre. In 2007 it was featured on the television series Time Team which attempted to discover the nature of the medieval buildings.

Hooke is a small village and civil parish in the county of Dorset in southern England, situated about 7 miles (11 km) northeast of the town of Bridport. It is sited in the valley of the short River Hooke, a tributary of the River Frome, amongst the chalk hills of the Dorset Downs. In the 2011 census the parish had a population of 157.Rampisham Down, the hill immediately northeast of the village, is the site of a transmitter station operated by VT Communications, broadcasting long-range radio signals for clients including BBC World Service. The outskirts of the village are home to Hooke Court and its surrounding parklands. Originally built in 1407 by Humphrey Stafford, the Court was extended in 1609 by the Marquis of Winchester.To the southwest of the village are Warren Hill and the woods of Hooke Park on its western flanks.

Toller Whelme is a small hamlet in Dorset, England, situated in the civil parish of Corscombe approximately 2.3 miles (3.7 km) east of Beaminster, 6 miles (9.7 km) north of Bridport and 13 miles (21 km) north-west of Dorchester. There are seven homes in the hamlet: West Farm, Norcombe Hayes, Manor House, 1 & 2 West Farm Cottages, East Farm and Lake Farm. Toller Whelme takes its name from the River Toller (the former name of the present River Hooke), at the source of which it stands: the second element Whelme means river source or spring in Anglo-Saxon. It has occasionally in the past also been known as Pinny's Toller or Penny Toller, from the name of the landowning Pinney family formerly established here at the manor house. The Manor House was once the principal residence of a single estate farmstead which has been subsequently divided into separate properties and holdings. The Manor was once a grange farm of Forde Abbey near Chard. Older buildings in the hamlet include the Manor House, a nearby converted barn and two nearby adjoining cottages (1 & 2 West Farm Cottages). The perimeter wall exterior of the Manor House exhibits 'sockets' that in the past held the roof joists of a series of small lean-to style cottages that no longer exist. In the hamlet there is also a farm, with a relatively new farmhouse that replaced the old dairy. A lake was created in front of the farmhouse in the 1970s to provide water for the farm cattle during drought conditions. A little further down the valley is Michael's Peace, a nature reserve managed by the Dorset Wildlife Trust. The reserve was created by Beaminster GP and environmental activist Dr Mike Hudson. Toller Whelme is a modern ecclesiastical parish, formed in 1871 from the ancient parish of Corscombe; the Anglican church of St John was built the previous year. The church belongs to the Manor and has an unusual set of steel bells.

Melbury Osmond is a village and civil parish in the county of Dorset in southern England. It lies approximately 7 miles (11 km) south of the Somerset town of Yeovil. The underlying geology is Cornbrash limestone, with adjacent Oxford clay. Within the clay can be found deposits of stone which can take on a very high polish, earning them the name "Melbury marble". The village is mentioned in the Domesday Book as a possession of the Arundell family, and remained so until the 19th century. The parish church, St. Osmund's, was totally rebuilt in 1745 and restored in 1888, although it has registers dating back to 1550. In the 2011 census the parish had a population of 199.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" and in 1906 Sir Frederick Treves wrote that it was "the most charming village in these Western backwoods".In its history the village has been involved in the trade of plated buckles and horn buttons, and the manufacture of dowlas. During the 19th century, the village was home to the Dorset Ooser, a wooden mask brought out during "Rough Music" ceremonies.There are 34 listed buildings and structures within the parish, including the Grade II* Old Rectory and the Grade I parish church.Thomas Hardy's mother lived in Melbury Osmond as a child, and she was married in the church. 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".

The Church of All Saints in Closworth, Somerset, England was built in the 13th century. It is a Grade II* listed building.