England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Spetisbury St John the Baptist

The Parish

The parish of Spetisbury lies in eastern central Dorset roughly 3 miles southeast of the market town of Blandford Forum. Spetisbury sits on the A350 road which links Blandford Forum with Poole. Spetisbury is a linear village which runs alongside the A350 for well over a mile and which is almost contiguous with Charlton Marshall to the northwest. The village was entirely squeezed in between the railway line of the Somerset & Dorset Railway and the River Stour. Spetisbury's position gave it access to both the rich grazing pastures alongside the river, the haunt of cattle, with chalk downland rising westwards which would have been a mixture of arable, mainly cereals, and sheep runs. The village contains evidence of early settlement, at its southern end and west of the railway line is the uni-vallate Iron Age fort of Spetisbury Rings. The creation of the railway was responsible for exposing what had been the site of a battle between the occupants and the Roman legions in 43AD exposing 80 skeletons most with battle injuries. Modern developments arrived in the parish with the construction of the railway which ran from Blandford Forum to Poole, it has now closed and been re-purposed as the North Dorset Trailway, a mixed usage trail for hikers and cyclists. Spetisbury is drained southeastwards by the Stour which makes its way to Poole Harbour and thence to the English Channel. Spetisbury is sited at around 40 metres above the sea in its valley setting, westwards down rise to reach a general height of between 120 & 130 metres with nearby Charlton Down typical at 124 metres. Spetisbury parish covered a little over 2,200 acres and would have supported a population of close to 650 parishioners. In Domesday times Spetisbury was largely held by William de Mohun and offered 7 ploughs, meadows & pastures and a mill.

The Church

St John's church stands on the western side of the High Street almost as it leaves the village headed northwestwards, High Street ids the A350. Three distinct periods are represented within this church which was originally built in the 13th century but most of that Early English Gothic work has been replace as the main core of the church was rebuilt in 1859. The 13th century church acquired it short and stubby western tower in the late 15th century in the Perpendicular style. The tower is of 3-stages and comes complete with battlementation and a projecting stair turret. The rebuilding of the church in 1859 left intact the only early medieval fabric which remains, that being the northern arcade which Pevsner dates to the early 13th century in part. Obviously the Victorian nave and chancel are not those in which these marriages would have been celebrated. Parking for the church can be difficult, this is a main trunk road and whilst urban speed limits are in place there is no provision for parking except for utilising the narrow pavement. A row of trees to the south of the church limit the favoured aspects but most other angles are available for the photographer.