Compton Abbas

Compton Abbas

St Mary's Church, Compton Abbas
Compton Abbas
Compton Abbas shown within Dorset
Population 216 [1]
OS grid reference ST869184
Civil parish
  • Compton Abbas
District
Shire county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town SHAFTESBURY
Postcode district SP7
Dialling code 01747
Police Dorset
Fire Dorset and Wiltshire
Ambulance South Western
EU Parliament South West England
UK Parliament

Compton Abbas is a village and civil parish in the county of Dorset in southern England. It lies within the North Dorset administrative district, 3 miles (4.8 km) south of the town of Shaftesbury. It is sited on greensand strata on the edge of the Blackmore Vale,[2] below the chalk downs of Cranborne Chase. On top of these hills is Compton Abbas Airfield. The A350 road between Wiltshire and the south coast passes through the village. In the 2011 census the civil parish had a population of 216.[1] The name Compton Abbas derives from the Saxon "cumb-ton", meaning 'village in a narrow valley', plus "abbas" which refers to Shaftesbury Abbey (the land was owned by the abbess). The church, St. Mary's, was built in 1866 to replace the older structure which was more remote from the village.

The tower of the Church of St Mary in East Compton is a Grade I listed building.

References

  1. 1 2 "Area: Compton Abbas (Parish), Key Figures for 2011 Census: Key Statistics". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 4 July 2014.
  2. ↑ Ralph Wightman (1983). Portrait of Dorset (4 ed.). Robert Hale Ltd. p. 16. ISBN 0-7090-0844-9.

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