Listed Building record MDO43402 - Milton Abbey School, Milton Abbas

Country house, used as public school. Built between 1771 and 76 for Joseph Damers, by Sir W Chambers and J Wyatt. Mainly ashlar stone walls, slate and lead roofs, with parapets. Ashlar stacks, some designed as pinnacles.

Milton Abbey Grammar School was founded and endowed by Wm. de Middleton, Abbot of Milton, in 1521, when a Schoolhouse was provided close to the Abbey Church, and a schoolmaster. By 1600 the number of scholars has decreased from 80 to 8 or 10. In 1630 a new Schoolhouse was erected in Market Street, adjoining the Abbey Churchyard. This was burnt down in 1658 and rebuilt in 1662. The school was enlarged in 1664. By 1780 there were over 100 scholars. In 1785 the School was removed to Blandford Forum, and the Milton buildings demolished. <1>

ST 79900226. The schoolhouse is positioned and described on a mid-18thc. plan of Milton Abbas before the village was rebuilt in its present situation. The plan is approximately of 1/2500 scale, and bears no specific date, and is exhibited in the Abbey Church as a print, perhaps a late 19th c. re-drawing of the original. There are no visible remains of the building, and the site is grass covered, but the outline of the building has been transferred to the OS 1/2500, 1901. (See illustration). <2>

<1> Pentin Rev H, 1904, Milton Abbey and its School, 17-19 (Unpublished document). SDO17591.

<2> Quinnell, N V, Various, Field Investigators Comments NVQ, F1 NVQ 30-AUG-55 (Unpublished document). SDO11903.

<3> Royal Commission on Historic Monuments, 1970, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume III (Central) Part 2, 193-197 (Monograph). SDO136.

<4> Steinmetzer, M F R, 2017, Archaeological monitoring and recording at Milton Abbey, Milton Abbas, Dorset (Unpublished document). SDO16325.

<5> Steinmetzer, M F R, 2021, Archaeological monitoring and recording at Milton Abbey, Milton Abbas, Dorset (Unpublished document). SDO17294.

<6> National Record of the Historic Environment, 201889 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Feb 11 2022 11:48AM