Millennium music
Burton Bradstock, West Dorset, England in the year 2,000
| At the westerly end of Chesil Beach, nestling in
the beautiful Bride Valley where the river Bride wends its way to
the sea, lies Burton Bradstock,
a pretty village of
some 1,000 residents. Today, the heart of the village is still
unspoilt with pretty 16th. and 17th. century thatched cottages
clustered around the church of
St. Mary the Virgin.
The main part of the church is 15th. century although the north wall
of the nave, with its two original windows, dates back a further 100
years or so. As with most villages, Burton Bradstock has had its
share of developments of modern houses in the last century, but its
central character remains intact. The village has a
school, a
shop, post office stores, cafe on the beach, three pubs, hotel,
garage, W.I. Hall, Reading Room and even a library! Few modern
villages can boast so many amenities. It has an impressive range of
active groups including the Church,
Women's Institute,
Royal British
Legion ,
Village
Society, Burton
Bradstock Players (our own pantomime),
Bride
Valley Scout Group and
Parish
Council to name but a few. As part of the Millenium
activities, the Parish Council funded the creation of this village
web site. In addition to its aim of providing a wide range of useful
and up-to-date information and
contacts, Millennium activities will be recorded and added to this
site as they take |
place during the year. Over the years, numerous books and articles have been published about the village and the surrounding area.:- A preliminary search has resulted in a useful list of publications for those wishing to learn more . In addition, as Burton Bradstock lies on that part of the coast famous for its fossils, an article has been written for the village on the Jurassic Coast, as it relates to the village and the local area. On top of that, a preliminary investigation into the village's pre-history has also been obtained. The village has recently created a historic walk as part of its Millennium activities. The project entitled "Roberts' Trail", was instigated by the Parish Council with cooperation and some financial support from Dorset County Council and Dorset Community Action. It has been designed around the contribution Richard Roberts, an entrepeneur of the day, made to the village in the eighteenth century. Roberts built two water mills in the village to swingle (clean and ret) and spin/weave flax for a wide variety of products that were exported all over the world. His mills were the first of their kind in the west country, hence his initiative and foresight firmly established Burton Bradstock as the centre for the flax swingling/processing industry. Two pictorial boards will shortly be erected in the Parish showing a map of the village and the route of the walk which takes in some 40 places of historical interest. It is also planned to produce booklets with a map describing the trail. These will be available for purchase (for a small charge) at the village post office. |
We would welcome your comments and suggestions to help us improve and develop the site as an important and sustainable Village resource.
Please E-Mail us
Burton Bradstock Parish Council sponsor this site.
This page was created by David Linford for the
Burton Bradstock Web Site Committee
Copyright Notice & Disclaimer