Visit Dorset

6www.visit-dorset.com7Stories of the PastFrom romantic abbey ruins, to the haunting remains of hill-forts and pagan rings,from fascinating stories in local museums to the lessons of nature in gloriousgardens, the area’s rich history is just waiting to be heard.abBlandford Fashion Museum theblandfordfashionmuseum.com✆ 01258 453006Blandford Town Museum blandfordtownmuseum.org✆ 01258 450388Gillingham Museum gillinghammuseum.co.uk✆ 01747 822600Kingston Lacy nationaltrust.org.uk/kingstonlacy✆ 01202 883402Knoll Gardens Nursery knollgardens.co.uk✆ 01202 873931Larmer Tree Gardens larmertreegardens.co.uk✆ 01725 516971Priest’s House Museum& Garden priest-house.co.uk✆ 01202 882533Shaftesbury Abbey & GoldHill Museums shaftesburyheritage.org.uk✆ 01747 852910Shillingstone Station Project shillingstone-station-project.co.uk✆ 01258 860696Sturminster Newton Mill &Museum sturminsternewton-museum.co.ukWhite Mill nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-whitemill✆ 01258 858051Wimborne Minster wimborneminster.org.uk✆ 01202 884753a. Fiddleford Mill (PB), b. Priest's House Museum, c. Great DorsetSteam Fair (RH), d. An unusual view of Blandford Forum (RH)Experience the ebb and flow of history onthe River Stour. Visit lovingly restored mills atSturminster Newton and White Mill and atWalford Mill, now a high quality crafts centre.Rural Dorset’s industrial heritage is revealed atShillingstone Railway Station, a restored stop onthe Somerset and Dorset Line and during theGreat Dorset Steam Fair, the largest heritageevent of its kind in the world (see page 19).Explore country houses; magnificent 17thCentury Kingston Lacy with its stunning artcollection, the manor house at Edmondshamwith its charming walled garden and octagonalVictorian dairy, open on selected days.Enjoy open gardens and special events at DeansCourt, Farrs Lodge, Cranborne Manor and theLarmer Tree Gardens. Delight in the gloriousgrass displays at award-winning Knoll Gardens.To do...Feel the power of a water millClimb the Minster’s spiral staircaseSee the sarcophagi at Kingston LacyGet "hands-on" at the MuseumTake a gardening masterclassVisit the world-renowned Steam FairUnearth our Roman history and dig for clues tothe past at Wimborne’s Priest House Museum,discover the area’s connection to artist JohnConstable in Gillingham or learn of BlandfordForum’s fiery past in its wonderful town museum.Take a trip down memory lane with decades ofcostumes at the Blandford Fashion Museum.Discover the peaceful ruins of ShaftesburyAbbey, founded in 888AD by King Alfred orWimborne Minster’s centrepiece, the graciousMinster Church of St Cuthburga with its beautifularchitecture and intriguing Astronomical Clock.cd