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Photograph courtesy of Michael Eastman
Roke Farm in 1927.
A gentler pace indeed! Second from the left is Eric Jerrard.
Third from the left is William Pearce, who lived at Church Cottages
Photograph Courtesy of John Pitfield
Bere Regis & District Motor Co. Bus in 1936.
Shortly after Mr Ironside's merger with Mr Toop beside their Leyland Bus while out on a coach trip. At left is Bill Ironside and on the right Fred Hann, the driver.
Photograph Courtesy of John Pitfield
Doddings River Plain, Bere Regis in 1890.
The note written on this photo says "What it was in 1890 at lower end" and shows the site where the cress-beds were laid out within two years when the business of cress farming begun here.
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
House next to Watercress Beds around 1905
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Artesian Springs in the Watercress beds.
It looks like a pleasure garden!
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Watercress Cultivation.
Gives you a good idea of the space these beds take up.
The Photographer was T Nesbitt of Blandford
Photograph Courtesy of John Pitfield
Bere Regis Motor Service in the late 1920's.
Photograph Courtesy of John Pitfield
Brick workers at Brick-Hill, Bere Regis in circa 1904
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Watercress Beds & worker.
It looks like he is about to go shooting!
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Horses at White Lovington.
This was the stable block at White Lovington, since demolished to make way for new houses.
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Outside the Royal Oak Pub, 1910.
The caption says, 'the defeated army, East Dorset, 28/1/10'. Message us if you have any ideas why?
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Doddings Watercress Beds.
The Sylvasprings train in action
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Rye Hill Farm.
Aerial shots like this can be invaluable for both historians and archeologists
Photograph courtesy of Tony Bates
Townsend Farm circa 1900.
Good 1 horsepower vehicle parked in the foreground!
Photograph courtesy of Tony Bates
Bere Regis Fire Brigade, c1900.
An interesting contraption indeed! It looks like it's been led by Lenin!
Photograph courtesy of Tony Bates
An early Harvester at Doddings Farm, c1900.
A womderful scene with the straw all stacked neatly in the fields in the distance.
Photograph courtesy of Tony Bates
Haystack making, c1900. Where's that needle?
Photograph courtesy of Tony Bates
Horse, cart & workers at the Watercress beds. Back breaking work, but cooling on a hot day!
Photograph courtesy of Tony Bates
Watercress Picking, c1900. Someone's going to need a back massage from his missus!
Photograph Courtesy of John Pitfield
Roke Farm, Bere regis in 1927.
The surrounding countryside at Bere Regis meant that farming was always the largest industry of the area. Here we see Jack Riggs on his tractor in the summer.
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Ladies Cabbage planting on the farm.
Do you notice the village church in the background?
Photograph courtesy of Michael Eastman
Carpenters at West Mill, Shitterton.
Now that must have been hard work! The Mill building behind them is an antique furniture shop now - kind of appropriate!
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
West Mill, Shitterton.
2 Wood Mill workers.
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Tea break at the watercress beds. Some well neeed time off!
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Gathering the harvest.
This photograph has a lovely feel to it.
Photograph courtesy of Michael Eastman
Hay making in 1939.
The girl in the middle of this jolly group is Margaret Bartlett.
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Horses & Wagon.
Here's 3 horsepower for you!
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Watercress Beds.
Methinks your back would ache after a while!
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
On the farm.
Bone crunching ride!
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Forking hay.
Needle in a haystack?
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Ploughing a field.
Quite a job.
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Out in the fields.
These 3 horses are earning their keep.
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Big Dinner.
Company Banquet.
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Big Dinner. Company Banquet.
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Watercress Beds Office.
Bert Day in the yard of Sylvasprings Watercress company.
Photograph courtesy of Michael Eastman
Horses outside Bere Regis.
Lovely pair of horses - with Black hill in the background?
Photograph courtesy of Mark Bennett
Watercress Beds.
Talk about a short stroll to work...
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Quins born to a sheep. Its very rare for a sheep to have Quins.
Photograph courtesy of Mark Bennett
The Watercress Beds in the Winter.
The tree casts an imposing outline on this Winters day...
Doddings Farm in circa 1904.
There are 23 workers standing in the farmyard and another three people in the garden on the right.
Photograph Courtesy of John Pitfield
Forresters March, West Street, Bere Regis in the late 1930s.
The friends of Bere Regis church banner reads "Hope And Sympathy In Time Of Sickness" are passing No 75, 76 and 77, West Street.
Photograph Courtesy of John Pitfield
Farming at Doddings, Bere Regis in the mid 1930s.
A gyro-tiller (rotary plough) being used south-west of Bere Regis by Bedford & Jesty's farm workers.
This was typical of many farming innovations introduced to the area by the firm.
Photograph Courtesy of John Pitfield
Detail of Village thatching.
It looks like this Village cottage needs some urgent re-thatching!
Photograph Courtesy of John Pitfield
Photograph taken at the bus depot at Bere Regis, the drivers are (left to right); Johnny Bowring, Charlie Ironside, Fred Hann, Bill Ironside, Perce Davis and Arthur Ironside.
Photograph Courtesy of John Pitfield
Barn being rethatched At Roke Farm.
Thatchers today command a very good living as their numbers have dwindled since Victorian times, but construction of thatched houses has actually increased over the last few decades. Whether through planning guidelines or simply that there is a consumer demand, the thatch vernacular is here to stay...
Photograph courtesy of Sylvia Pitcher
Photograph courtesy of Sylvia Pitcher
Bere Regis Watercress Beds Workers, 1930's. Do you know who these people are? Contact us if you do
Photograph courtesy of Raymond Lake
Harvesting on Stone Hill, 1950s
Photograph courtesy of George Ward
Bread Oven at 106 Woodbury Hill
C Toms
Horse & Cart
Photograph Courtesy of John Pitfield
Chamberlaynes Farm, Bere Regis circa 1882.
These farm buildings and Mill were photographed by J.W. Boswell soon after they were built, south of the village, on the river, near the road to Wool. Relatives of the occupants of the farmhouse, centre-left, donated this picture while visiting the village in 1990.
Photograph courtesy of Raymond Lake
Dodding's Farm, Bere Regis, looking west on 1st July 1932
Artesian wells, with water level above the surface.. A series of about 30 boreholes, each about 90 ft. deep, taps a large underground reservoir of water in the Chalk. The 'head' of this is sufficient to keep all the boreholes flowing constantly, thus yielding ample water to supply several acres of watercress beds.
Dodding's Farm, Bere Regis, looking west on 1st July 1932
Artesian wells, with water level above the surface.. A series of about 30 boreholes, each about 90 ft. deep, taps a large underground reservoir of water in the Chalk. The 'head' of this is sufficient to keep all the boreholes flowing constantly, thus yielding ample water to supply several acres of watercress beds.
Coronation decorated Bere Regis & District Bus in 1953.
Harry Oliver, a driver for Bere Regis & District for many years, this particular double decker was on the Bere Regis to Poole service. This photo was taken in the car park of the Greyhound pub in Winterborne Kingston. It was decorated for the 1953 Coronation and was a Carnival entry for which he won first prize.
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Harvesting outside the Church in Victorian times
Group of Bere Regis Labourers in the 1850s. This Photograph was taken by J.W. Boswell, the village photographer & is the oldest Photograph of this Villages residents in existence.
Photograph courtesy of Paul & Alison Bennett
Watercress Beds at Doddings in Victorian times
Photograph © The Watercress Company
Train on the Village Watercress Beds, in the late 1920's.
Hurdle making in the village
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Interior of Barn at Milborne Stream, in 1943
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS).
Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Barn at Milborne Stream, in 1943
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Roke Farm in 1968
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Roke Farm Barn, on 16/03/1972
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Roke Barn, on 16/09/1971
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Roke Barn and Shepherds Cottage from the South, on 16/09/1971
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Roke Farm Barn from the south, on 16/03/1972
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Chamberlaynes Mill in 1882. The Elderly man is Robert Scutt, born in 1814. Also in the Photograph are William Jones Scutt & his family.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Chamberlaynes Mill in 1887. This Farm used to be part of the Bladen Estate, until it was sold, including cottages, for £10,822 in 1953.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Shitterton Farmyard in 1989, from the North East
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Shitterton Farmyard in 1989, from the North.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Shitterton Farmyard in 1989, from the North West.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Shitterton Farmyard in 1989, from the West
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Shitterton Farmyard in 1989, from the South West.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Construction of the Watercress Beds in the 1920s. The boots worn by the workers are leather, which were dubbined, prior to rubber full-length boots.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Replanting the Watercress Beds in the 1920s
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum.
Excavated ground in preparation of a Watercress Bed, in the 1920s. A constant fall of 1ft in 100yds is constructed.
This Photograph is Copyright of Dorset County Museum. The Museum is owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History & Archaeological Society (DNH&AS). Reproduction is strictly prohibited.
Photograph Courtesy of John Pitfield
Sheep near Hyde Lodge in about 1900
Photograph courtesy of Lynn Fancy
Bedford & Jesty Workforce in 1919
Photograph Courtesy of John Pitfield
Mr Bedford’s workforce in about 1897, photographed at Doddings Farm.
Left to right, standing: Albert Bedford, Enos Horley, Mr Stickley, Jim Hewitt, Bill Langdown, Fred Hewitt, Jack Joyce, Ernest Day, Frank Hawkins, William Bedford. Front row: Harry Hawkins, Henry Davis, Harry Stickley, Charlie Hewitt, Edward Langdown, Charles Cobb, Ted Hawkins, Ian Standfield, W. Standfield, Sam Hewitt, Esau Baker, George Hawkins, Jack Rowland.