©Bryan Phillips Nov 2024

See our new webpage for yet another mystery in the history of Milton Abbas. There is an explanation of St Sampson’s day fair on this website too.

Milton Abbas fair was the second biggest in Dorset at the time of the Subsidy of 1334, Bere Regis being the largest. People would travel from all over Dorset to meet, trade, find partners and have FUN – much as today. Milton Abbas was the hub of the road network in Dorset until Lord Milton moved the roads in the late 18th century.

The fairs at Milton Abbas were of great importance to the medieval town. They provided income for the abbey because of the tolls for the stalls, they boosted the profits of the tradesmen, especially the inns, they provided games and entertainment for the villagers, and they were where new products could be viewed and purchased.

Many medieval fairs have been revived, although they could not possibly reimagine the smells, the crimes and the liveliness of what took place here before the dissolution. Modern revivals can be visited at Glastonbury, Tewkesbury and Arundel.

The modern biannual Georgian Street Fair at Milton Abbas was a revival begun in 1973 to commemorate the building of the new village you see today.