Thornford
Encyclopedia
Thornford is a village in north west Dorset
, England
, situated in the Yeo valley
four miles south west of Sherborne
. Thornford is in Thornhackett Parish, a combined parish comprising the villages of Thornford and Beer Hackett
.
There were 643 registered voters on the electoral register for Thornford in 2006. The Parish Council comprises seven elected members from Thornford and three from Beer Hackett, all of whom serve a four year term of office.
The village has a general store and post office
, a pub
, a primary school
, a Norman church
, a village hall, a recreation field, a cricket
club and a railway station. Thornford railway station
is on the Heart of Wessex Line
running between Bristol
and Weymouth. Thornford is also served by the South West Coaches Ltd bus 200 running between Yeovil
and Sherborne
.
Thornford is mentioned in the Domesday Book
where it is called Torneford and is listed as belonging to the Bishop of Salisbury
. Archeological finds suggest Bronze Age
or earlier inhabitation. A Roman villa
has been excavated close to the village.
There are a number of Grade II listed buildings in the village, the centre of which, dominated by a Victorian
clock tower, was designated a Conservation area
in 1994. The most recent Grade II listing (in February 2008) is the British Telecom
telephone box
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, situated in the Yeo valley
River Yeo (South Somerset)
The River Yeo, also known as the River Ivel or River Gascoigne, is a tributary of the River Parrett in north Dorset and south Somerset, England....
four miles south west of Sherborne
Sherborne
Sherborne is a market town in northwest Dorset, England. It is sited on the River Yeo, on the edge of the Blackmore Vale, east of Yeovil. The A30 road, which connects London to Penzance, runs through the town. The population of the town is 9,350 . 27.1% of the population is aged 65 or...
. Thornford is in Thornhackett Parish, a combined parish comprising the villages of Thornford and Beer Hackett
Beer Hackett
Beer Hackett is a hamlet in west Dorset, England, three miles south west of Sherborne and five miles south east of Yeovil. The village has a population of 86 .- External links :*...
.
There were 643 registered voters on the electoral register for Thornford in 2006. The Parish Council comprises seven elected members from Thornford and three from Beer Hackett, all of whom serve a four year term of office.
The village has a general store and post office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
, a pub
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
, a primary school
Primary education
A primary school is an institution in which children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as primary or elementary education. Primary school is the preferred term in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth Nations, and in most publications of the United Nations Educational,...
, a Norman church
Norman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
, a village hall, a recreation field, a cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
club and a railway station. Thornford railway station
Thornford railway station
Thornford railway station serves the village of Thornford, four miles to the south west of Sherborne in Dorset. It is managed by First Great Western and is served by trains on the Heart of Wessex Line between and...
is on the Heart of Wessex Line
Heart of Wessex Line
The Heart of Wessex Line, also known as the Bristol to Weymouth line, is a United Kingdom railway line that runs from Bristol to Westbury to Weymouth...
running between Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
and Weymouth. Thornford is also served by the South West Coaches Ltd bus 200 running between Yeovil
Yeovil
Yeovil is a town and civil parish in south Somerset, England. The parish had a population of 27,949 at the 2001 census, although the wider urban area had a population of 42,140...
and Sherborne
Sherborne
Sherborne is a market town in northwest Dorset, England. It is sited on the River Yeo, on the edge of the Blackmore Vale, east of Yeovil. The A30 road, which connects London to Penzance, runs through the town. The population of the town is 9,350 . 27.1% of the population is aged 65 or...
.
Thornford is mentioned in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
where it is called Torneford and is listed as belonging to the Bishop of Salisbury
Bishop of Salisbury
The Bishop of Salisbury is the ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of Salisbury in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers much of the counties of Wiltshire and Dorset...
. Archeological finds suggest Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
or earlier inhabitation. A Roman villa
Roman villa
A Roman villa is a villa that was built or lived in during the Roman republic and the Roman Empire. A villa was originally a Roman country house built for the upper class...
has been excavated close to the village.
There are a number of Grade II listed buildings in the village, the centre of which, dominated by a Victorian
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
clock tower, was designated a Conservation area
Conservation area
A conservation areas is a tract of land that has been awarded protected status in order to ensure that natural features, cultural heritage or biota are safeguarded...
in 1994. The most recent Grade II listing (in February 2008) is the British Telecom
BT Group
BT Group plc is a global telecommunications services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is one of the largest telecommunications services companies in the world and has operations in more than 170 countries. Through its BT Global Services division it is a major supplier of...
telephone box
Telephone booth
A telephone booth, telephone kiosk, telephone call box or telephone box is a small structure furnished with a payphone and designed for a telephone user's convenience. In the USA, Canada and Australia, "telephone booth" is used, while in the UK and the rest of the Commonwealth it is a "telephone...