Editing Stalbridge

{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}
{{Infobox UK place
| official_name = Stalbridge
| country = England
| region = South West England
| lieutenancy_england = [[Dorset]]
| unitary_england = [[Dorset (unitary authority)|Dorset]]
| static_image_name = 050113 02 Stalbridge church.jpg
| static_image_caption = St Mary's Church
| population = {{Population WD|show=value}}
| population_ref = ({{Population WD|show=year}})
| population_density = 
| os_grid_reference = ST735177
| coordinates = {{coord|50.9594|-2.3784|display=inline,title}}
| post_town = Sturminster Newton
| postcode_area = DT
| postcode_district = DT10
| dial_code = 01963
| constituency_westminster = [[North Dorset (constituency)|North Dorset]]
| london_distance = 
| website = [http://www.stalbridgetowncouncil.gov.uk/ Stalbridge Council]
}}

'''Stalbridge''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|t|ɔː|l|b|r|ɪ|dʒ}})<ref>{{cite book|last=Jones|first=Daniel|date=1919|title=An English Pronouncing Dictionary|url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.83619|page=[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.83619/page/n383 353]|location=London|publisher=Dent}}</ref> is a town and [[Civil parishes in England|civil parish]] in [[Dorset]], [[England]], situated in the [[Blackmore Vale]], near the border with [[Somerset]]. In the [[United Kingdom 2021 Census|2021 census]] the civil parish—which includes the hamlets of '''Stalbridge Weston''', and '''Thornhill'''—had 1,224 households and a population of 2,668.<ref name=census2021>Table PP002 - Sex, from {{cite web |title=Parish Profiles |url=https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/sources/census_2021_pp |publisher=Office for National Statistics |access-date=5 August 2024}}</ref> The nearest towns are [[Sturminster Newton]], {{convert|4|mi|km|0|abbr=off|spell=on}} southeast, [[Sherborne]], {{convert|6|mi|km|0|abbr=on}} west, and [[Shaftesbury]], {{convert|7|mi|km|0|abbr=on}} northeast. Stalbridge is situated on the [[A357 road (Great Britain)|A357]] on a low [[limestone]] ridge, {{convert|1|mi|km|spell=in|round=0.5|abbr=off}} west of the [[River Stour, Dorset|River Stour]]. It officially became a town in April 1992.<ref>Stalbridge Town Council, 2005. [http://www.stalbridgetowncouncil.gov.uk/ Introduction].  Accessed 2005-12-30.</ref>

Though relatively small, Stalbridge has its own independent supermarket, dispensing pharmacy, dentist and optician, as well as many other services, reflecting its [[catchment area (human)|catchment area]] of surrounding farms and hamlets. It is also home to the local free newspaper, the ''Blackmore Vale Magazine''.

==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/>

==Governance==
Stalbridge is part of the [[North Dorset (UK Parliament constituency)|North Dorset parliamentary constituency]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.streetcheck.co.uk/postcode/dt102pp|title=Interesting Information for Stalbridge, Sturminster Newton, DT10 2PP Postcode|last=StreetCheck|website=StreetCheck|language=en-GB|access-date=2018-10-30}}</ref>

Stalbridge is part of the [[Stalbridge and Marnhull]] [[Wards and electoral divisions of the United Kingdom|electoral ward]], which elects 1 member to [[Dorset Council (UK)|Dorset Council]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Area profile for Stalbridge & Marnhull - Dorset Council |url=https://gi.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/insights/AreaProfiles/Ward/stalbridge-and-marnhull |access-date=2024-02-24 |website=gi.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk}}</ref>

Historically, Stalbridge was in [[Sturminster Rural District]] from 1894 to 1974, and [[North Dorset]] district from 1974 to 2019.<ref>{{cite web |title=Stalbridge  Dorset |url=https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/13888 |website=A vision of Britain through time}}</ref>

== Demographics ==
{| class="wikitable" style="width:32em; text-align:center;" 
|+ Census population of Stalbridge parish
|-
! scope=col| Census
! scope=col| Population
! scope=col| Households
|-
|| 2001<ref>Dorset County Council & [[Office for National Statistics|ONS]], 2001 "[http://www1.dorsetcc.gov.uk/LIVING/FACTS/Census2001.nsf/6cadf4da179fc19500256663004afece/25c6a81095f8c97e80256ec500445f51?OpenDocument Stalbridge Parish Profile] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060519125841/http://www1.dorsetcc.gov.uk/LIVING/FACTS/Census2001.nsf/6cadf4da179fc19500256663004afece/25c6a81095f8c97e80256ec500445f51?OpenDocument |date=19 May 2006 }}."  Accessed 2003-07-19.</ref>
|| 2,579
||
|-
|| 2011<ref name=ons>{{cite web |url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadKeyFigures.do?a=7&b=11128938&c=Stalbridge&d=16&e=62&g=6417929&i=1001x1003x1032x1004&m=0&r=1&s=1433423198073&enc=1 |title=Area: Stalbridge (Parish). Key Figures for 2011 Census: Key Statistics |publisher=Office for National Statistics |work=Neighbourhood Statistics |access-date=5 February 2015}}</ref> 
|| 2,698 
|| 1,160
|-
|| 2021<ref name=census2021/>
|| 2,668
|| 1,224
|}

==Geography==
{{Location map | Dorset Geology
| caption = Geological map of Dorset. Stalbridge lies on Great Oolite clay.
| width = 300px
}}
{{maplink|frame=yes|zoom=13|id=Q1242808|type=shape|text=Interactive map of Stalbridge}}
Stalbridge lies in the [[Blackmore Vale]]. As an area of hills, this means that the town lies largely on a gradient. The [[A357 road (Great Britain)|high street]] through the town centre follows the contour of the landscape, before climbing up Church Hill past the parish church of St. Mary, heading towards the Somerset border and [[Henstridge]]. To the east of the high street, Station Road heads down the hill, heading towards the Stalbridge trading estates, passing the modern housing estates built in the 1970s.<ref>{{Cite web| title=Eighteenth – Nineteenth Century Stalbridge (1700-1899) | url=https://www.dorsetforyou.gov.uk/media/163796/Stalbridge-Part-5.2-and-5.4-Eighteenth-nineteenth-and-twentieth-century-February-2011/pdf/Stalbridge_Part_5.2_and_5.4_Eighteenth_nineteenth_and_twentieth_century_February_2011.pdf | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180103072715/https://www.dorsetforyou.gov.uk/media/163796/Stalbridge-Part-5.2-and-5.4-Eighteenth-nineteenth-and-twentieth-century-February-2011/pdf/Stalbridge_Part_5.2_and_5.4_Eighteenth_nineteenth_and_twentieth_century_February_2011.pdf | archive-date=2018-01-03}}</ref> To the West, the town climbs Barrow Hill, with older housing, some estates dating to the 1950s, and the 1990s Pond Walk.
There are two parks in Stalbridge, the larger of which is situated on Barrow hill, and hosts a football field and a cricket pitch, as well as two tennis courts. This park also has an [[outdoor playset]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://playmapp.co.uk/south-west/stalbridge-park/|title=Stalbridge Park}}</ref> The smaller park functions largely as an [[outdoor playset]], with two slides, a small football pitch and other toys.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.stalbridge.info/stalbridge-street-map.html|title=Stalbridge Street Map}}</ref>

There are several footpaths and bridleways in Stalbridge. A trailway follows the route of the disused [[Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cyclinguk.org/sites/default/files/document/migrated/tro/dorset_council_bridleway_stalbridge.pdf|title=Public Path Diversion Order}}</ref> It passes through the Stalbridge Nature Reserve, and has a hard pack surface suitable for cycles, including [[hybrid bicycle]]s, or even endurance [[road bicycle]]s.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.stalbridge.info/stalbridge-nature-reserve-and-trailway.html|title=Stalbridge trailway and nature reserve}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{commons category-inline|Stalbridge}}
*[http://www.stalbridge.info/ Stalbridge Info Community Website]
*[http://www.stalbridgetowncouncil.gov.uk/ Stalbridge Town Council official website]
*[https://ukga.org/england/Dorset/towns/Stalbridge.html Stalbridge Genealogy site]
{{Dorset}}
{{North Dorset}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Stalbridge| ]]
[[Category:Towns in Dorset]]
[[Category:Civil parishes in Dorset]]
[[Category:North Dorset District]]
[[Category:Country houses in Dorset]]