©Bryan Phillips March 2025
We hope that this page will inspire you to look further into the hundreds of interesting things to be found in this amazing village.
We will be posting images along with a short description and history and linking to the Historic England listing for the place whether it be a park, an ancient monument or a building.
Many of these can also be found on the Historic Environment Record managed by Dorset County Council.
They are all important and give us a sense of this place.
Please contact us with your photos and descriptions of things you have discovered. We would love to hear from you.
CLAPCOTT Monument, St Mary’s, Winterborne Whitechurch
Graffiti in Milton Abbey Church
©Bryan Phillips, May 2026 One of our members, Clive Barnes has conducted a targeted personal investigation into the historic graffiti at Milton Abbey Church over several visits between 2024 and 2025. Rather than performing an exhaustive architectural survey, he has focused on identifying anonymous marks and inscriptions that carry historical significance regarding the Abbey’s fabric,…
When were the Tregonwell Almshouses built? 1647, not 1674!
©Clive Barnes, March 2026It is well known that the Milton Abbas almshouses were first built in the old town of Milton Abbas and hen moved to the new village in 1779. But when exactly were they first built? If you research this, you are likely to come across two dates: 1647 and 1674, confusingly, and…
The fall of John Tregonwell, history or legend?
©Clive Barnes Jan 2026 The story You might know this story. Five-year-old John, the precious heir to the Tregonwell family, Lords of the Manor of Milton Abbas, is taken by his nurse to the narrow walkway around the tower of the Abbey Church. Left to himself, he leans over to reach for a rose growing…
Milton Abbas Local History Group, Dorset, UK 