Early Photographs
Unfortunately, early photographs of the village are very rare ! More would be very welcome - they can be scanned and returned !
The earliest known is :
Photo lithograph from John Pouncey's "Dorsetshire Photographically Illustrated" published in 1857.
(Volume 1- Plate 3 - taken June 1857) - 73 lithographs made from photographs. It is thought that this publication was the first in the country to use photolithography printing process. NB Plate 75 in Steepleton House but this in Iwerne Steepleton in north Dorset.
(RC's print - I was lucky to find this in Sherborne just after I moved to Steepleton in 2000)
Pouncey lived next door to Lambert, the owner of Manor Farm in the foreground and the builder (in 1870) of the present day Steepleton Manor now on the site.
This is an enlarged section of the above lithograph, showing the Old Rectory, Old Manor Cottage and The Cottage with farm buildings in the foreground on the present site of Steepleton Manor Care Home. (built 1870)
The same view approximately - taken by RC in April 2020
A lot more trees !
Steepleton Water c 1900 ? Note cottages are those shown below but from the opposite viewpoint. The modern concrete road bridge and slip road up to the present main road do not exist. The outlet from the pond is the mill leat just to the left of the cottage in the distant. The trees no longer exist but the surrounding bank to the pond would appear to bound the existing road through the village.
Two early photographs of terraced cottages in the west end of the village with the upper mill leat running in front.
Two more photographs of the same cottages (kindly donated by Mr James Coles in January 2012)
James believes that in 1881, his great grandfather, Frank Coles married Elizabeth Trevett who had lived in this cottage.
Not so sure about this one ! Looks if it is taken from the opposite way from the photo above (ie looking east)
Above : Is this the present day view of the same terraced cottages shown above ?? - or are they now demolished ?? (Photo RC 2012)
Did local builder George Allen undertake the conversion works ?
Above : Another interesting old photograph (c1930/40's ?) that looks like the same two cottages shown in the 2012 view on the left.
Threshing at Manor Farm, Winterbourne Steepleton c1928 using a traction engine and belt driven threshing machine. Sparks from such engines often caused thatch fires. The engine is an Aveling & Porter and may have been on hire from Eddisons of Dorchester.
Names of men in the photograph are, as yet, unknown.
Below : These two photos were scanned from originals that the late Mr Cedric Mould of the Cottage, Winterbourne Steepleton had in his possession.
(Perhaps handed down with the Cottage itself ?)
They appear to be photos taken from the west end of the cottage (now part of the garden of the adjoining Manor Farm) C 1920 / 1930 ??
Below : Another photo also from the late Mr Cedric Mould - not certain where this is !!
