Of Historical Interest...
As our village has been settled since Neolithic times there are many points of interest for keen historians, current inhabitants and curious visitors. Here is a collection of some of our most recent discoveries.
Fovant Military Railway
The Fovant Military railway joined the South Western Rail from Salisbury to Exeter at Dinton Station and wound its way up the hill to Fovant valley. It crossed Dinton Road, ran along the foot of Fir Hill below the village allotments, up behind the cottages on High Street to the small quarry above the Pembroke Arms. READ MORE...
Fovant's Lime Kiln
The large chalk quarries in Fovant were made long before WW1. The soldiers may have used some chalk from there as they made their regimental badges but they probably used sites much closer to their work. Early photos of the badges show pits close to the badges which would have been much more convenient for the construction process and avoided having to transport the chalk up the hill. READ MORE...
Willie Langdon remembered
My father, William Langdon, known to all as Willie, took over the tenancy of Naishes Farm at Compton Chamberlayne in 1943. Britain was at war and food rationing was in force. One of the items he brought with him was a suitcase full of packets of sugar; winter feeding for his bees. It sorely puzzled ...READ MORE
The Scratch Dials of St George's Church
Scratch dials, mass dials or sundials, are usually found on the south wall of pre-14th century churches close to the Vestry door. They were primitive clocks telling the priest when to ring the bell for set services during the Church’s day.
The villagers did not bother with them much as ...READ MORE
Fovant's Water Meadows
The Fovant Water Meadows drew water extensively from the Nadder River but also from Fovant Stream as it flowed from the springs at West Farm to join the Nadder. The drowned fields stretched from what later became the water cress beds and is now an ornamental lake. READ MORE
'Riverside' High Street
This Indenture made the one and twentieth Day of December in the ffourth year of the reign of our Sovereign Lord George the second by the grace of God King over great Britain ffrance and Ireland Defender of the ffaith Anno Dom 1730
...READ MORE...
Isolation Cottage
This was a red brick cottage built in the Fovant Woods close by the side of the Nadder, which was used by anyone suffering a fever who needed isolation. It must have been in used as a hospital in the early 18th century as when we came to Dinton in 1905, it was a private residence. An old couple lived there, their name was Churchill. READ MORE...
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Memoirs of a Fovant Land Girl by Lil Cole
Born and raised in the Anfield area of Liverpool, I was 12 when war broke out. The school and children were evacuated to Wales, but I refused to go, telling my mother if anything happened to them I wanted to be there, however, the thought of missing school for the length of the war also seemed an interesting prospect. Then Mother signed up to do ‘home school’ as did other mothers whose children weren’t evacuated, so I didn’t escape after all!