by Joy Reynolds
The Museum’s Medieval Research Group is making exciting progress in uncovering the early history of Blandford Forum and its surrounding villages. The group, led by Museum Trustee Cindy Wood, who recently retired as Senior Lecturer in Medieval History at the University of Winchester consists of five dedicated researchers with a shared passion for the medieval past.
One of the greatest challenges facing the project is that most of Blandford’s historical records were destroyed in the Great Fire of 1731. To overcome this, the group has turned to alternative sources, including court, tax and property records preserved in national archives. These documents are helping to build a picture of the people who lived and worked in the area between the Norman Conquest and 1603.
A major contribution has come from group member Peter Taylor, who has created an impressive database containing every reference to Blandford and the surrounding villages that the team has identified from surviving records. This invaluable resource is enabling the researchers to trace individuals, families and local developments over more than five centuries.
The research is also shedding light on the growth of Blandford itself. While it is difficult to identify a settlement representing Blandford Forum in the Domesday Book of 1086, by the end of the twelfth century the town had emerged as an important market centre at a key crossing of the River Stour. The group hopes that its findings will eventually form the basis of a book on medieval Blandford and the district. Their work is already attracting wider interest, with the Victoria County History of Dorset planning to draw on the group’s research for a future volume on Blandford Forum. Through patient investigation and careful analysis of surviving records, the Medieval Research Group is helping to restore a fascinating chapter of our local history.