Editing Stalbridge (section)

==History==
[[File:Thatched Cottage at Stalbridge - geograph.org.uk - 133085.jpg|thumb|Thatched cottage at Stalbridge]]
There was a settlement near Stalbridge in [[Roman Britain|Roman]] times. The town has a 15th-century [[Church (building)|church]] with a 19th-century tower, dedicated to [[Saint Mary]] and restored to designs by [[T. H. Wyatt]],<ref name=mpr>Michael Pitt-Rivers, 1966. ''Dorset''. London: Faber & Faber.</ref> in 1878, which overlooks the town from a hill.  The town has had market rights since the time of [[George I of Great Britain|King George I]], though it has not held a regular market for many years.  In the town centre stands a 10-metre (30&nbsp;ft) tall [[market cross]], said to be the finest in the country.<ref name=tdp>The Dorset Page, "[http://www.thedorsetpage.com/locations/place/S190.htm Stalbridge] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927034639/http://www.thedorsetpage.com/locations/place/S190.htm |date=27 September 2007 }}."</ref>

Stalbridge was home to scientist [[Robert Boyle]] (see below), and writer [[Douglas Adams]], who wrote much of ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy]]'' in the town.<ref>{{cite web|title=Stalbridge History Trail|url=http://www.stalbridge.info/uploads/3/1/5/8/31586035/stalbridge_history_trail_2014.pdf|publisher=Stalbridge|access-date=8 December 2018}}</ref> The town also boasts that it is home to the oldest living male [[twin]]s in the world.

Artist Sir [[James Thornhill]] lived just south of the town, in Thornhill Park, which he bought in 1725. The house is believed to have been originally owned by Sir Walter Raleigh in the 16th century.{{Citation needed|reason=Reliable source needed for this sentence|date=June 2015}} In 1727, Sir James Thornhill erected an [[obelisk]] in the park to honour the accession of [[George II of Great Britain|King George II]].<ref name=tdp/>

From September 1863 Stalbridge was served by [[Stalbridge railway station]] on the [[Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway]], with trains to [[Bath, Somerset|Bath]] and [[Bournemouth]]. During [[World War II]] a [[Minister of Food (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Food]] depot was situated here. The last train ran on 7 March 1966, and most of the tracks, station and goods yard have been replaced, though tracks still cross the road.<ref>Mike Oakley, 2001. ''Dorset Railway Stations''.  Wimborne: Dovecote Press {{ISBN|1-874336-96-2}}</ref>

=== Stalbridge House ===
In 1618 [[Mervyn Tuchet, 2nd Earl of Castlehaven]], who had inherited Stalbridge Park from his father, decided to build a [[mansion]] house on his Stalbridge estate. He enclosed an area used as [[common land]] to the northwest of the church, moving tenant farmers out, and built a [[Jacobean style]] mansion, the fifth largest house in [[Dorset]].

In 1631 the earl's eldest son [[James Tuchet, 3rd Earl of Castlehaven|James]] brought a case against him for "unnatural practices", and he was subsequently [[execution (legal)|execute]]d.

James sold the house to [[Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork]]. After his father's death, the scientist [[Robert Boyle]] became [[Lord of the Manor]], and the house was his residence between 1644 and 1652.  It was here that he conducted many of his experiments.<ref name=mpr/>

At some point during the house's history a {{convert|2|m|ftin|adj=mid|-high}} stone wall was built around the boundary of Stalbridge Park. There is some argument as to when and why the wall was built. It may have been commissioned by Castlehaven as a status symbol, work for French [[prisoners of war]] during the [[Napoleonic Wars]], or as work for local labourers in times of high unemployment.

By 1822 the house was in poor repair and the owner, [[Henry Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey]], had it demolished.<ref name=lth>Denys Kay-Robinson, 1984. ''The Landscape of Thomas Hardy''. Exeter, Webb & Bower {{ISBN|0-86350-020-X}}</ref> By 1827 all that remained was the raised area where it had stood.  The stone was sold off and much of it is in use elsewhere in the town, including the large farm house which now stands in the park.

There are many popular local myths and ghost stories about the demise of the house, mostly involving a fire destroying the house.

Stalbridge Park features in [[Thomas Hardy's Wessex]] as "Stapleford Park".<ref name=lth/>