Furzebrook, Dorset
Encyclopedia
Furzebrook is a small village
on the Isle of Purbeck
, in the county of Dorset
in the south of England
.
Furzebrook is about 2 km south of Wareham
and 5 km west of Corfe Castle.
The name Furzebrook derives from the furze/gorse and a brook. The first use of the name was probably by Furzebrook Farm. Furzebrook became the centre of the clay industry as all the local Purbeck Ball Clay
was taken there to ripen by exposing. The clay was repeated turned for six months. As the ball clay ripened it acquired plasticity and became suitable to mix with various other clays which made them more plastic.
At Furzebrook there are several narrow gauge railway tracks, these converged from outlying local mines and claypits, the Furzebrook Railway
. A further narrow gauge line ran to Ridge
Wharf. As the Wareham to Swanage branch line of the London and South Western Railway
was built it passed through Furzebrook and therefore a lot of clay was transferred via the mainline trains. Furzebrook is now well known as being the railhead for the oil extracted from the local Wytch Farm
oilwell.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
on the Isle of Purbeck
Isle of Purbeck
The Isle of Purbeck, not a true island but a peninsula, is in the county of Dorset, England. It is bordered by the English Channel to the south and east, where steep cliffs fall to the sea; and by the marshy lands of the River Frome and Poole Harbour to the north. Its western boundary is less well...
, in the county of Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
in the south of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Furzebrook is about 2 km south of Wareham
Wareham, Dorset
Wareham is an historic market town and, under the name Wareham Town, a civil parish, in the English county of Dorset. The town is situated on the River Frome eight miles southwest of Poole.-Situation and geography:...
and 5 km west of Corfe Castle.
The name Furzebrook derives from the furze/gorse and a brook. The first use of the name was probably by Furzebrook Farm. Furzebrook became the centre of the clay industry as all the local Purbeck Ball Clay
Purbeck Ball Clay
Purbeck Ball Clay is a concentration of ball clay found on the Isle of Purbeck in the English county of Dorset.-Geology:The main concentration of ball clay in Dorset is to the north of the Purbeck Hills centred around Norden. Ball clays are sedimentary in origin...
was taken there to ripen by exposing. The clay was repeated turned for six months. As the ball clay ripened it acquired plasticity and became suitable to mix with various other clays which made them more plastic.
At Furzebrook there are several narrow gauge railway tracks, these converged from outlying local mines and claypits, the Furzebrook Railway
Furzebrook Railway
The Furzebrook Railway, also known as the Pike Brothers' Tramway, was a narrow gauge industrial railway on the Isle of Purbeck in the English county of Dorset...
. A further narrow gauge line ran to Ridge
Ridge, Dorset
Ridge is a village in the English county of Dorset. It is situated on the south bank of the River Frome, about half a mile due south east of the town of Wareham.Ridge forms part of the civil parish of Arne, within the Purbeck local government district....
Wharf. As the Wareham to Swanage branch line of the London and South Western Railway
London and South Western Railway
The London and South Western Railway was a railway company in England from 1838 to 1922. Its network extended from London to Plymouth via Salisbury and Exeter, with branches to Ilfracombe and Padstow and via Southampton to Bournemouth and Weymouth. It also had many routes connecting towns in...
was built it passed through Furzebrook and therefore a lot of clay was transferred via the mainline trains. Furzebrook is now well known as being the railhead for the oil extracted from the local Wytch Farm
Wytch Farm
Wytch Farm is an oil field and processing facility in the Purbeck district of Dorset, England. It is the largest onshore oil field in western Europe. The facility, operated by BP, is hidden in a coniferous forest on Wytch Heath on the southern shore of Poole Harbour, two miles north of Corfe Castle...
oilwell.
See also
- Blue PoolBlue PoolBlue Pool is a flooded, disused clay pit where Purbeck Ball Clay was once extracted. It is now a lake within the Furzebrook Estate, a park of heath woodland and gorse near Furzebrook on the Isle of Purbeck, in the county of Dorset, south England....
is part of the Furzebrook area - Furzebrook RailwayFurzebrook RailwayThe Furzebrook Railway, also known as the Pike Brothers' Tramway, was a narrow gauge industrial railway on the Isle of Purbeck in the English county of Dorset...
, also known as the Pike Brothers' Tramway