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The Blackmore Vale (less commonly spelt Blackmoor) is a vale
Vale

In geography, a vale is a wide river valley, usually with a particularly wide flood plain or flat valley bottom. Vales commonly occur between the escarpment slopes of pairs of chalk downs, where the chalk dome has been erosion, exposing less Geological resistance underlying rock, usually clay....
, or wide valley
Valley

In geology, a valley is a Depression with predominant extent in one direction. A very deep river valley may be called a canyon or gorge....
, in North Dorset
North Dorset

North Dorset is a Non-metropolitan district in Dorset, England. It is largely rural, but includes the towns of Blandford Forum, Gillingham, Dorset, Shaftesbury, Stalbridge and Sturminster Newton....
, and to a lesser extent South Somerset
South Somerset

South Somerset is a Non-metropolitan district in Somerset, England. Its council is based in Yeovil.The district was formed on 1 April 1974, and was originally known as Yeovil, adopting its present name in 1985....
 and southwest Wiltshire
Wiltshire

Wiltshire is a Ceremonial counties of England in the South West England of England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire....
 in southern England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
. The vale is part of the Stour
River Stour, Dorset

The River Stour is a 60.5 mile long river which flows through Wiltshire and Dorset in southern England, and drains into the English Channel. It is sometimes called the Dorset Stour to distinguish it from rivers of the same name....
 valley. The vale is delimited by the Dorset Downs
Dorset Downs

The Dorset Downs are an area of Chalk downland in the centre of the county Dorset in south west England. The downs are the most western part of a larger Chalk Formation which includes Cranborne Chase, Salisbury Plain, Hampshire Downs, Chiltern Hills, North Downs and South Downs....
, a chalk ridge to the south; Cranborne Chase
Cranborne Chase

Cranborne Chase is a Chalk plateau in central southern England, straddling the counties Dorset, Hampshire and Wiltshire. The plateau is part of the English Chalk Formation and is adjacent to Salisbury Plain and the West Wiltshire Downs in the north, the Dorset Downs to the south west and the South Downs running south east....
, chalk hills to the east; and the watershed between the Stour and Yeo
YEO

Yeo is a Southern Min spelling of a common Chinese language surname Yang ?.Yeo is a Korean surname .Yeo may also be an abbreviation for "yeoman"....
 valleys to the northwest (which generally follows close to the borders between North Dorset, South Somerset and West Dorset).






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Dorset Stur Mill From Bridge
The Blackmore Vale (less commonly spelt Blackmoor) is a vale
Vale

In geography, a vale is a wide river valley, usually with a particularly wide flood plain or flat valley bottom. Vales commonly occur between the escarpment slopes of pairs of chalk downs, where the chalk dome has been erosion, exposing less Geological resistance underlying rock, usually clay....
, or wide valley
Valley

In geology, a valley is a Depression with predominant extent in one direction. A very deep river valley may be called a canyon or gorge....
, in North Dorset
North Dorset

North Dorset is a Non-metropolitan district in Dorset, England. It is largely rural, but includes the towns of Blandford Forum, Gillingham, Dorset, Shaftesbury, Stalbridge and Sturminster Newton....
, and to a lesser extent South Somerset
South Somerset

South Somerset is a Non-metropolitan district in Somerset, England. Its council is based in Yeovil.The district was formed on 1 April 1974, and was originally known as Yeovil, adopting its present name in 1985....
 and southwest Wiltshire
Wiltshire

Wiltshire is a Ceremonial counties of England in the South West England of England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire....
 in southern England
England

native_name =|conventional_long_name = England|common_name = England|image_flag = Flag of England.svg|image_coat = England COA.svg|symbol_type = Royal Coat of Arms...
. The vale is part of the Stour
River Stour, Dorset

The River Stour is a 60.5 mile long river which flows through Wiltshire and Dorset in southern England, and drains into the English Channel. It is sometimes called the Dorset Stour to distinguish it from rivers of the same name....
 valley. The vale is delimited by the Dorset Downs
Dorset Downs

The Dorset Downs are an area of Chalk downland in the centre of the county Dorset in south west England. The downs are the most western part of a larger Chalk Formation which includes Cranborne Chase, Salisbury Plain, Hampshire Downs, Chiltern Hills, North Downs and South Downs....
, a chalk ridge to the south; Cranborne Chase
Cranborne Chase

Cranborne Chase is a Chalk plateau in central southern England, straddling the counties Dorset, Hampshire and Wiltshire. The plateau is part of the English Chalk Formation and is adjacent to Salisbury Plain and the West Wiltshire Downs in the north, the Dorset Downs to the south west and the South Downs running south east....
, chalk hills to the east; and the watershed between the Stour and Yeo
YEO

Yeo is a Southern Min spelling of a common Chinese language surname Yang ?.Yeo is a Korean surname .Yeo may also be an abbreviation for "yeoman"....
 valleys to the northwest (which generally follows close to the borders between North Dorset, South Somerset and West Dorset). The River Stour flows out of the vale at Blandford Forum
Blandford Forum

Blandford Forum is a small historic market town on the River Stour, Dorset in the North Dorset district of Dorset, England noted for its Georgian architecture....
 in the southeast, a town sandwiched between the Dorset Downs and Cranborne Chase. The river flows into the vale north of Gillingham
Gillingham, Dorset

Gillingham is a town in the Blackmore Vale area of Dorset, England. The town is the most northerly in the county. It is 3 miles south of the A303 lying on the B3095 and B3081....
.

The vale, in particular, the village of Marnhull ("Marlott"), is the opening backdrop for Thomas Hardy's, 'Tess of the D'Urbervilles' ; he also lived and wrote in Sturminster Newton
Sturminster Newton

Sturminster Newton, known to locals as Stur, is a town in the Blackmore Vale area of Dorset, England. The town is famous as the home of poet and author William Barnes, and, for part of his life, Thomas Hardy....
 for a time. Poet William Barnes
William Barnes

William Barnes was an England writer, poet, minister, and philologist. He wrote over 800 poems, some in West Country dialects and much other work including a comprehensive English grammar quoting from more than 70 different languages....
 also lived in Sturminster Newton
Sturminster Newton

Sturminster Newton, known to locals as Stur, is a town in the Blackmore Vale area of Dorset, England. The town is famous as the home of poet and author William Barnes, and, for part of his life, Thomas Hardy....
. Douglas Adams
Douglas Adams

Douglas Noel Adams was an England author, dramatist and musician. He is best known as the author of the The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series....
 and Robert Boyle
Robert Boyle

Robert Boyle was an Irish People theologian, natural philosopher, chemist, physicist, inventor, and early gentleman scientist, noted for his work in physics and chemistry....
 lived in Stalbridge
Stalbridge

Stalbridge is a small town and parish in Dorset, England, situated in the Blackmore Vale area of North Dorset district, near the border with Somerset....
 for part of their lives.

Land use in the vale is predominantly dairy
Dairy

A dairy is a facility for the extraction and processing of animal milk—mostly from goat or cattle, but also from bovine, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption....
 farming
Agriculture

Agriculture refers to the production of food and goods through farming and forestry. Agriculture was the key development that led to the rise of civilization, with the animal husbandry of domestication animals and plants creating food surpluses that enabled the development of more Population density and Social stratification societies....
, with many small farms dotted across the vale. Until it was closed in 1998 Sturminster Newton livestock market was the busiest weekly livestock market in Britain
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
. There are also many small towns and villages in the vale:
  • Blandford Forum
    Blandford Forum

    Blandford Forum is a small historic market town on the River Stour, Dorset in the North Dorset district of Dorset, England noted for its Georgian architecture....
  • East Stour
    East Stour

    East Stour is a village on the River Stour, Dorset between Gillingham, Dorset and Sturminster Newton in the Blackmore Vale area of Dorset, England....
  • Gillingham
    Gillingham, Dorset

    Gillingham is a town in the Blackmore Vale area of Dorset, England. The town is the most northerly in the county. It is 3 miles south of the A303 lying on the B3095 and B3081....
  • Shillingstone
    Shillingstone

    Shillingstone is a village in the Blackmore Vale area of north Dorset, England, situated on the River Stour, Dorset between Sturminster Newton and Blandford Forum....
  • Stalbridge
    Stalbridge

    Stalbridge is a small town and parish in Dorset, England, situated in the Blackmore Vale area of North Dorset district, near the border with Somerset....
  • Stour Provost
    Stour Provost

    Stour Provost is a village in the Blackmore Vale area of north Dorset, England, situated on the River Stour, Dorset between Sturminster Newton and Gillingham, Dorset....
  • Sturminster Newton
    Sturminster Newton

    Sturminster Newton, known to locals as Stur, is a town in the Blackmore Vale area of Dorset, England. The town is famous as the home of poet and author William Barnes, and, for part of his life, Thomas Hardy....
  • Todber
    Todber

    Todber is a village in north Dorset, England, situated in the Blackmore Vale five miles south west of Shaftesbury. The village has a population of 124 ....
  • West Stour
    West Stour

    West Stour is a small village situated in the Blackmore Vale area of North Dorset, England. The village has a population of 187 . It is one of a group of villages known as The Stours, located in the River Stour, Dorset Valley, five miles south of Gillingham, Dorset....
  • Shaftesbury
    Shaftesbury

    Shaftesbury is a town in North Dorset, England, situated on the A30 road near the Wiltshire border 20 miles west of Salisbury, Wiltshire. The town is built 750 foot above sea level on the side of a chalk and greensand hill, which is part of Cranborne Chase, the only significant hilltop settlement in Dorset....
    , Sherborne
    Sherborne

    Sherborne is an affluent market town in north west Dorset, England. It's situated on the River Yeo and A30 road, on the edge of the Blackmore Vale six miles east of Yeovil....
     and Wincanton
    Wincanton

    Wincanton is a small town in south Somerset, southwest England. The town lies on the A303 road, the main route between London and South West England, and has some light industry....
     are on the edges of the vale, but not actually in the vale.


Steam locomotive

A Southern Railway
Southern Railway (Great Britain)

The Southern Railway , was a British railway company established in the Railways Act 1921. It linked London with the English Channel ports, South West England and Kent....
 West Country class
SR West Country Class

The SR West Country and Battle of Britain Classes, collectively known as Light Pacifics or informally as Spam Cans, are classes of streamliner 4-6-2 steam locomotive designed for the Southern Railway by Oliver Bulleid....
 steam locomotive
Steam locomotive

A steam locomotive is a locomotive powered by steam. The term usually refers to its use on railways, but can also refer to a "road locomotive" such as a traction engine or steamroller....
, built in 1946 at Brighton Works as no. 21c123, bore the name of the Vale. However, she currently carries the incorrect spelling "Blackmoor Vale". She is currently based at the Bluebell Railway
Bluebell Railway

The Bluebell Railway is a heritage railway running for nine miles along the border between East Sussex and West Sussex, England. Steam trains are operated between Sheffield Park railway station and Kingscote railway station, with an intermediate station at Horsted Keynes railway station....
 in Sussex
Sussex

Sussex , from the Old English Su?seaxe , is a Historic counties of England in South East England England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex....
, where she has been operational since 2000.

External links



Towns and villages