©Bryan Phillips Jun2025

As well as giving a series of monthly talks, we also have a Research Group.

We meet about four times a year and discuss our progress on the topics we are each researching. This is the most exciting part of being a member of the Milton Abbas Local History Group – rather than sitting listening to talks, for me it is much more re-warding hearing about the new information coming to light. One of the most mysterious is Charles Bullock’s finds in a seemingly empty field devoid of any evidence of buildings or structures and well away from the old market town – there was clearly an iron forge, a lead working area, and many high-status objects such as silver pennies, buttons and horse fitments which must mean that industry and trading was occurring here in medieval times.

Come along to our next talk by Charles on Wed 4 Jun to see, touch and hear all about the exciting metal detecting finds.

New techniques and information are coming to light all the time. With public access to LiDAR we have a whole new perspective on the changes of landscape and the move of buildings, building the lake, St Catherine’s Chapel and its “encampment”. Steve Griffin has been leading this surge of revelations.
Anne Brown from Sydling St Nicholas (which was one of Milton Abbey’s manors be-fore it was sold to Winchester College at the Dissolution around 1540) has been translating some medieval documents. We are now beginning to realise that Milton Abbey was far wealthier than previously thought just after the fire of 1309 destroyed most of the Abbey buildings. The income from its manors was quite prodigious and should have resulted in it being rebuilt much sooner than it was.

Now that Lyscombe (once owned by Milton Abbey) has recently been bought by Dor-set Wildlife Trust, they have asked us to share our research with them – another topic opens up!

These topics are just a few of the many that the Research Group is working on. There is not space here to tell the many stories so far.

There are so many mysteries of Milton Abbas’ history still to solve – why not get in touch and help us along.