Introduction :

Welcome to the Online Parish Clerk (OPC) website for Winterbourne Abbas in Dorset, England.

On line Parish Clerks are private volunteers who research the local history of their villages and the families who lived in them. Whilst every effort has been made to transcribe records accurately, researchers should, where possible, always check primary sources. The main local source is the Dorset History Centre in Dorchester (Formerly County Record Office). 

Winterbourne Abbas is a village and parish some 4.5 miles south west of the county town of Dorchester, Dorset. The parish covers some 1513 acres. The village itself is located in the east of the parish.

The South Winterbourne stream rises to the west of Winterbourne Abbas village and runs through a manmade channel following the line of the road prior to finding its natural course in the valley to the east of the village. It runs down the South Winterbourne valley to the south of Dorchester, flows into the River Frome and reaches the sea in Poole harbour some 25 miles to the east of the village. The village (church) is about 97 metres above sea level.

It is an ancient area with extensive groups of round barrows including the well known Poor Lot group. To the west of the village there is a sarsen stone circle dating from the early bronze age known as the Nine Stones. There are strip lynchets, a long barrow and an ancient field group. The Parish Church of St Mary stands in the middle of the village and dates from the C13th. There are also surviving 16th and 17th century buildings. 

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Location : OS Grid Ref (church) : SY 61874 90498 

   The Dorset Online Parish Clerk (OPC) for Winterbourne Abbas from March 2021 : 

   Richard Crumbleholme

            Old Manor Cottage, Winterbourne Steepleton, Dorset DT2 9LG

            e mail : r.crumbleholme (type @ here) gmail.com

Part of the Dorset Online Parish Clerks Network - Links to : Dorset OPC HOME PAGE

This OPC site has nothing to do with the village's Parish Council !

Enquiries, comments and corrections are welcome ! - and, of course, new material, photographs and records.

My thanks to the previous OPC's & Transcribers whose researches have been reproduced in this new website :

 Kim Parker, Lynda Small, John Ridout, Wendy Warne & Rachel Kent (acknowledged with their transcriptions) 

All transcriptions on this site are intended for use in personal and private research only and may NOT be used for any commercial purpose

The writer accepts no responsibility for accuracy or for any comments made.

New Website created using Google New sites March 2021

My other OPC websites are :

Winterbourne Steepleton OPC : sites.google.com/site/winterbournesteepletonopc

Winterborne St Martin (Martinstown) OPC sites.google.com/view/winterbornestmartinopc?usp=sharing 

Dorset Windmills (linked from Dorset OPC website) : sites.google.com/site/dorsetwindmills