Chilmark, Wiltshire

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Coordinates: 51°05′44″N 2°02′42″W / 51.09557°N 2.04510°W / 51.09557; -2.04510
Chilmark

Church of St Margaret of Antioch
Chilmark

 Chilmark shown within Wiltshire
Population 432 (2001 Census)[1]
OS grid reference SU
Unitary authority Wiltshire
Ceremonial county Wiltshire
Region South West
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town Salisbury
Postcode district SP3
Dialling code 01722
Police Wiltshire
Fire Wiltshire
Ambulance Great Western
EU Parliament South West England
UK Parliament Salisbury
List of places
UK
England
Wiltshire

Chilmark is a Wiltshire village of some 150 houses straddling the B3089 road twelve miles (19 km) west of Salisbury.[2] The parish church was given by Henry VIII to the brother in law of his last wife.[3] The stream through the village, often dry in summer, flows some two miles (3 km) on to the River Nadder.

History

Roman artefacts have been found in the nearby quarries and Purbeck limestone possibly from Chilmark was used in the construction of Roman mansions at the villages of West Grimstead and Rockbourne Villa[4]

The Parish Church

Dedicated to St. Margaret of Antioch the Anglican parish church dates from the 13th century with additions in the 14th and 18th centuries. It was most recently restored in 1856 by T.H. Wyatt. The steepled tower, rebuilt in about 1770, retains 13th century lancet windows. The font has an original 13th century bowl on a 19th century base. The church contains several stained -glass windows from the 19th century. The churchyard contains 12 grade II listed chest tombs from the 17th and 18th centuries.[5]

Chilmark Ravine

A mile south of the village the stream passes through the Ravine, with longstanding quarry workings and several buildings dating from the 1930s, when they formed part of an RAF storage area (RAF Chilmark) for bombs and ammunition. This facility had a spur from the main London-Exeter railway line and a 2ft gauge internal railway.

Counter-terrorism training school

Some 55 acres (220,000 m2) of land in and near the Ravine is now a training area for counter-terrorism security and explosives.[6]

Chilmark quarries

Main article: Chilmark Quarries

These consist mainly of caverns. The limestone for Salisbury Cathedral was quarried here.[7] From the 1930s to the 1980s the caverns were used by the RAF as part of a major store for bombs and ammunition.[8] They are now in active use as a quarry again.[9]

References

  1. ↑ "Area: Chilmark CP (Parish): Parish Headcounts". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. 28 April 2004. Retrieved 28 September 2010. 
  2. ↑ Genuki details
  3. ↑ British history on line
  4. ↑ Sawyer, R., Nadder, 2006, p.84, The Hobnob Press, ISBN 978-0-946418-53-4
  5. ↑ Pevsner, N and Cherry, B., The Buildings of England (Wiltshire), Penguin Books Ltd., 1975. ISBN 0-14-071026-4
  6. ↑
  7. ↑ Quarry details
  8. ↑ Subterranea Britannica details
  9. ↑ http://www.chicksgrovequarry.co.uk/ Chicksgrove Quarry

  • Thatched cottages in the village

  • The village stream

  • War memorial

External links

Media related to Chilmark, Wiltshire at Wikimedia Commons

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