Thorncombe

infobox UK place

country = England
latitude= 50.8257

longitude= -2.8853
official_name= Thorncombe
population = 714
shire_district= West Dorset
shire_county = Dorset
region= South West England

constituency_westminster= West Dorset
post_town= CHARD
postcode_district= TA20 4
postcode_area=TA
dial_code= 01460
os_grid_reference= ST376033

Thorncombe is a village in west Dorset, England, situated five miles south east of Chard. The village has a population of 714 (2001), and 8.4% of dwellings are second homes.

Geography

The Parish of Thorncombe lies in the north-west corner of Dorset, bordering both Devon and Somerset. It is set in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The Parish is over 5200 acres in extent and is principally agricultural land. It forms part of the district of West Dorset. There is a population of about 700 – about half of which live in the village of Thorncombe, and the rest in the hamlets of Holditch, Hewood, Synderford and outlying farms and houses.

Thorncombe consists of three roads which meet at a "T" in the middle of the village. These roads are Chard Street, Fore Street and High Street.

Chard Street heads north to the Somerset town of Chard. Chard Street is probably the busiest road with the Village Hall, St, Marys Primary School and the housing estates of Gribb View and Tansee Hill. Gribb View breaks from the tradition of most of the village in being mostly brick or rendered buildings. The traditional build of the Village being flint faced cottages, as this stone was readily available from the local area. Tansee Hill being of a more recent build is more in keeping with the village as it consists of both flint faced and rendered buildings.

Fore Street heads to the east towards Venn and is a more traditional looking part of the village with flint face cottages and terraced housing down its length. Along Fore Street are many of the buildings which in previous eras the village would not survive without. These include the original Village Store, The Bakers and two pubs. Unfortunately all these buildings no longer function as their original purpose but still survive as housing.

High Street heads west and towards Sadborrow and Holditch. High Street again can be considered a more traditional looking with its housing. Halfway along High Street length is the recent development of Orchard Lane. This development, again like Tansee Hill, is in keeping with the look of the village with traditional looking buildings and some which include thatching.

Overall the village is set in beautiful Dorset countryside with a very traditional West Dorset look. Due to the position of Thorncombe it has become very desirable for people living outside the village. This has also accounted for the high number of second homes (nearly 10%) within the village. Local people born in the village have therefore found it increasingly difficult to buy property within the village because of the high property prices and the lower wages within employment in and around Thorncombe.

History

Within the village is the church of St Mary's Thorncombe. The original Church at Thorncombe was dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary by William Brewer, bishop of Exeter, in 1239. The building of the Church, as well as nearby Forde Abbey (founded in 1136), was superintended by Cistercian monks from Waverley, Surrey. Thomas Chard, alias Tyblis, the last Abbot, was Suffragan Bishop to the Bishop of Exeter from 1508 and was appointed Vicar of Thorncombe in 1529, 10 years before he left Forde Abbey at the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1539. The Rev. John Bragge was Vicar of Thorncombe from 1644 - 1647, when he was deprived of his Living, probably because he was involved in a Royalist plot against Cromwell, and was transported to Barbados. The old Church stood about 50 yards to the south of the present Church, the site being where the Wellingtonia tree now stands.

The present Church, incorporating a numbers of items from the old Church, was built in 1866-1867 at a cost of £4,000. The Foundation Stone was laid on 26th April 1866 by Margaret Bragge, widow of Colonel Bragge of Sadborow, and was dedicated by the Bishop of Salisbury on 15th October 1867. It was built in Perpendicular style, the windows being modeled on those of the cloisters of Forde Abbey.

The Memorial Brass. A wonderful piece of medieval brass workmanship in the Church is a fine memorial brass commemorating Sir Thomas and Lady Brook of Holditch Court. This is one of 500 brass memorials recorded in the Lancastrian period 1400-1453. It was removed from the old church and placed in the new church in 1867. From details of the costumes of the period, it has been accurately dated 1437.

Boundary changes. Until 1843, the Civil Parish of Thorncombe was in Devon, at which time it was transferred to Dorset. At the same time, it was transferred ecclesiastically from the Diocese of Exeter to the Diocese of Salisbury. In 1982, it was transferred to the Diocese of Bath and Wells, at which time it became a 'united benefice' sharing a vicar with the neighbouring (Somerset) parishes of Winsham and Cricket St Thomas. In 1999, the parishes joined with others to form the Chard and District Team Ministry.In 2006 Thorncombe together with Winsham linked with Tatworth, Chaffcombe and Cricket Malherbie with Knowle St Giles to form the Two Shires Benefice.

The Parish. The Book of the Axe (1875) says that, in 1770, the Old Church at Thorncombe was not large enough to contain 'the fourth part of the inhabitants'. The present Church was built to seat 400. This suggests that 200 years ago the population was over 1,600. At that time, the village was a centre for the wool trade and had a thriving lace-making industry. The population was 1,308 in 1851 and 1,189 in 1871. The most recent survey gives a population for the Parish of about 650. Despite this fall in the number of people living in the Parish, the sense of community and the general participation of the inhabitants in the life of the Parish is strong.

In the last 50 years the main industry in and around Thorncombe has been agriculture. This has usually employed main people from the village but due to the recent decline this has decreased. There are still a few farms which survive around the village but most residents work outside in the local towns of Chard, Crewkerne and Bridport.

Famous past inhabitants of Thorncombe include Sir Raymond Firth, Lady Rosemary Firth and Cecil Gould.

External links

* [http://www1.dorsetcc.gov.uk/LIVING/FACTS/Census2001.nsf/6cadf4da179fc19500256663004afece/8218f6b1fa40cf4480256ec800581750?OpenDocument Census data]
* [http://www.thorncombe.com/ Thorncombe Village website]
* [http://www.stmarysthorncombe.co.uk// Thorncombe School website]
* [http://www.fordeabbey.co.uk/pages/index.php Forde Abbey website]