Description
Poorstock or Powerstock, a village and a parish in Dorsetshire. The village stands on an affluent of the river Brit, with a station on the G.W.R., 159 miles from London 1/2 and 4 NE of Bridport, It has a post office under Melplash; money order and telegraph office, Bridport. The parish includes the tithings of West Milton, Mappercombe, Nettlecombe, South Poorton, Witherston, and part of Loscombe, the two latter not being in the ecclesiastical parish. Acreage, 4146; population of the civil parish, 776; of the ecclesiastical, 698. There is a parish council consisting of nine members. The living is a vicarage, united with the chapelry of West Milton, in the diocese of Salisbury; net value, £207 with residence. Patrons, the Dean and Chapter of Salisbury. The church was rebuilt in 1859 at a cost of more than £15,000, is in the style of the 12th, 14th and 15th centuries, and consists of nave, aisles, chancel, and porch, with a tower 60 feet high; it contains some handsome stained glass windows and beautiful sculpture. The Earl of Sandwich is lord of the manor.
Parish Church
The church of St. Mary is a building of stone, principally in the Decorated style, and consisting of chancel, nave, aisles, south porch, and an embattled western tower, containing a clock with chimes, and 5 bells, rehung in 1897: the chancel contains six stained windows; the stained west window is a memorial to the Ven. Thomas Sanctuary M.A. archdeacon of Dorset, and vicar of this parish, 1848-89: the original chancel arch is still preserved and is a highly interesting example of the Early Norman period; its capitals are enriched with characteristic sculpture and its pillars with a variety of arabesque patterns: the south doorway is elaborately adorned with niches flanked by panelled and crocketed butresses and pinnacles, the principal niche containing a group of the Virgin and Child: at the base of the tower are some remains of sculptured stones which belong to the Early Norman period: there is a fine brass eagle lectern, a panelled pulpit enriched with sculptured effigies of St. Peter, St. John and the Virgin, and an Early English font of Purbeck marble: the church was restored in 1859 at a cost of about £2,200, and affords 350 sittings.
The register dates from the year 1568.
Villages, Hamlets, &c.
Loscombe, a hamlet in Netherbury, North Poorton, and Poorstock parishes, Dorsetshire, 3 1/4 miles SE of Beaminster.
Nettlecombe, a tithing, conjoint with Mappercombe, in Poorstock parish, Dorsetshire, 4 1/2 miles NE of Bridport.
Poorton, South, a tithing in Poorstock parish, Dorsetshire, near Poorstock village.
Milton, West, a chapelry in Poorstock parish, Dorsetshire, on the river Asker, 1 1/4 mile W by N of Poorstock station on the G.W.R., and 8 1/4 miles NE by N of Bridport. Post town, Melplash (R.S.O.) Population, with Poorstock, 698. The living is annexed to the vicarage of Poorstock, in the diocese of Salisbury. The church was built in 1873.
