Roofless cottage, Post Office Row, in the abandoned village of Tyneham, Isle of Purbeck, Dorset, England, UK
Tyneham is a ghost village in south Dorset, England, near Lulworth on the Isle of Purbeck. It remains a civil parish, and is one of a handful of parishes in England with a population of zero. The village and 7,500 acres (30 km2) of surrounding heathland and chalk downland around the Purbeck Hills, were requisitioned just before Christmas 1943 by the then War Office (now MoD) for use as firing ranges for training troops. 225 people were displaced, the last person leaving a notice on the church door: "Please treat the church and houses with care; we have given up our homes where many of us lived for generations to help win the war to keep men free. We shall return one day and thank you for treating the village kindly." This measure was supposed to be temporary for the duration of World War II, but in 1948 the Army placed a compulsory purchase order on the land and it has remained in use for military training ever since. Though littered with scrap used as targets, and subject to regular shelling, the land has become a haven for wildlife as it has been free from farming and development. In 1975, after complaints from tourists and locals, the Ministry of Defence began opening the village and footpaths across the ranges at weekends and throughout August. Many of the village buildings have fallen into disrepair or have been damaged by shelling and in 1967 the then Ministry of Works pulled down the Elizabethan manor house, though the church remains intact, and has a stained-glass window by Martin Travers. The church and school house have since been preserved as museums. In 2008, Tyneham Farm was reopened to the public and conservation work there is ongoing.
Size: 4368px × 2912px
Location: Tyneham, Isle of Purbeck, Dorset, UK
Photo credit: © will Perrett / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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