Osmington

Osmington is a village and civil parish in the District of West Dorset within Dorset, England, situated on the Jurassic Coast 4 miles (6.4 km) northeast of Weymouth.^[1] The village has a population of 609.^[2] To the east is Osmington Hill.

History

A view of Osmington - this is actually Sutton Poyntz, the next village to the west

There is evidence of Bronze Age settlement in the area. The village's written history however begins in 940 when it is mentioned in a charter.

Its oldest building is the church, originally built in 1170 but with alterations up to the 19th century. Normal residential buildings in the village date back to the 16th century.

Osmington has a white horse cut into the hillside nearby. This is relatively recent, dating from 1808, and was cut for King George III.^[3]

The leading English landscape artist John Constable (1776–1837) spent his honeymoon here in October 1816 and painted views of the local area.

Economy

Osmington's economy was primarily agricultural until after the mid 20th century. With the decline in agricultural employment in the area, the village's character changed and it is now primarily occupied by people whose work is elsewhere. Whereas previously therefore there were several shops and tradesmen in the village, by the end of the 20th century there was no shop, most tradesmen had disappeared and the village pub had been closed,^[4] although this has been replaced by another inn. Despite the loss of local employment, the village, which at the end of World War II was so poor that large sections were condemned, has become affluent with a high proportion of professional and managerial residents (38.4% compared to a county average of 26.1%, as of 2001).^[5]

See also

• Osmington Mills, a small village on the coast close to Osmington
• Osmington White Horse, carved into a chalk hillside

References

1. ^ Osmington (St. Osmond), 'Osleston – Otley'. In Samuel Lewis (editor),A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 486–491.
2. ^ Census 2001
3. ^ Mary Kempe, Osmington, Brief History.
4. ^ Reg Symes, Osmington, The Character.
5. ^ Dorset Data Online : Osmington Parish Profile

External links

• Osmington local history
• Census data
• Osmington On-Line — the Osmington website

Coordinates: 50°38′N 2°22′W / 50.633°N 2.367°W / 50.633; -2.367