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Swanage
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Swanage is a small coastal town in the south east of Dorset, England. It is situated at the eastern end of the Isle of Purbeck, approximately 10 km south of Poole and 40 km east of Dorchester. The town has a population of 10,124 (2001). Nearby are Ballard Down, Old Harry Rocks, with Studland Bay to the north and Durlston Country Park to the south.
The town, originally a small port and fishing village flourished in the Victorian era, when it first became a significant quarrying port and later a seaside resort for the rich of the day.
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Encyclopedia
Swanage is a small coastal town in the south east of Dorset, England. It is situated at the eastern end of the Isle of Purbeck, approximately 10 km south of Poole and 40 km east of Dorchester. The town has a population of 10,124 (2001). Nearby are Ballard Down, Old Harry Rocks, with Studland Bay to the north and Durlston Country Park to the south.
The town, originally a small port and fishing village flourished in the Victorian era, when it first became a significant quarrying port and later a seaside resort for the rich of the day. Today the town remains a popular tourist resort, this being the town's primary industry, with many thousands of visitors coming to the town during the peak summer season, drawn by the bay's sandy beaches and other attractions.
During its history the bay was listed variously as Swanawic, Swanwich, Sandwich, and only in more recent history as Swanage.
The town is located at the eastern end of the Jurassic Coast, a World Heritage Site.
History
While fishing is likely the town's oldest industry, quarrying has been important to the town and the local area since at least the 1st century AD. During the time of the Roman occupation this industry grew, with the distinctive Purbeck marble being used for decorative purposes in buildings as far away as London. When the Romans left Britain, quarrying largely ceased until the 12th century.
The town is first mentioned in historical texts in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle of 877AD. It is stated as being the scene of a great naval victory by King Alfred over the Danes: "This year came the Danish army into Exeter from Wareham; whilst the navy sailed west about, until they met with a great mist at sea, and there perished one hundred and twenty ships at Swanwich." A hundred Danish ships which had survived the battle were driven by a storm onto Peveril Point, a shallow rocky reef outcropping from the southern end of Swanage bay. A monument topped (historically incorrectly) by cannon balls was built in 1882 by John Mowlem to celebrate this event and is situated at the southern end of the seafront promenade.
In the 12th century demand for Purbeck marble grew once again. While Purbeck marble is not suited to external use, as it does not weather well, it is however strong and suitably decorative for use as internal columns. As such the stone was used in the construction of many large churches and cathedrals being built as the time.
In contrast to the decorative Purbeck marble, Purbeck limestone, or more commonly 'Purbeck stone', has been used in construction locally since the early days of quarrying in Purbeck. Its use is less well documented as it was taken for granted as the default construction materials in the area. However, the arrival of more modern quarrying techniques in the 17th century resulted in an increase in production. The Great Fire of London in 1666 led to a period of large scale reconstruction in the city, and Purbeck stone was extensively used for paving. It was in this time that stone first started being loaded upon ships directly from the Swanage seafront; before this time quarried stone had been first transported to Poole for shipping.
The idea that Swanage could become a tourist destination was first encouraged by a local MP William Morton Pitt in the early 19th century, who converted a mansion in the town into a luxury hotel. The hotel is noted for having been visited in 1833 by the (then) Princess Victoria, later to become queen. The building was later renamed the Royal Victoria Hotel, now the building has been converted into flats and a bar and nightclub in the left and right wings respectively.
Mowlem and Burt - The Victorian era
The town's greatest prominence came during the Victorian period. John Mowlem (1788-1868), a Swanage man, became a successful builder in London, creating the Mowlem construction company, which still existed as recently as 2006, when it was acquired by another company.
John Mowlem made his business in London by importing stone into the city from around the country, including Purbeck limestone. Through this process, many relics and monuments were brought from London to Swanage in the nineteenth century by Mowlem and his nephew George Burt (1816-1894) who took over the business when Mowlem retired. It is said that these items brought from London were used as ballast for the empty vessels which transported the Purbeck stone to London.
These include a big clock tower commemorating the pier]], the Mowlem Institute (a reading room), the first gas and water works, and the development of the Durlston estate and [[Durlston Country Park|Country Park]], at the southern end of the town.
Railway was introduced to the town in 1885 with the encouragement of George Burt by the London and South Western Railway Company. By this time the town was becoming a popular resort destination for the wealthy, noted for its fine weather and clean air. The town previously had been fairly cut off due to its valley location, but the introduction of the railway made the town much more accessible to visitors, with direct services running from London. However the greatest increase in visitors came with the building of the second 'new' pier in 1895, built primarily for use by pleasure steamers.
The Wars Years To Today
The town enjoyed several decades quietly being successful as a seaside resort. The First Word War left few physical marks on the town, however during the Second gun emplacements and pillboxes were built at spots along the shoreline at the southern end of the bay. The town also received bomb damage during the Second World War, with 20 people killed. The town and other nearby villages are noted for playing a part in the development of radar.
After the Second World War the town like many other seaside resorts and indeed the country at large, suffered a recession with few people able to spare the money for holidaying. In 1972 the Swanage branch line of the railway was closed by British rail as part of larger network-wide cutbacks. Fortunately a group of local enthusiasts formed a charitable organisation with the purpose of restoring and preserving the branch line and steam and diesel locomotives to run along it, forming the Swanage Railway.
Through the years Swanage had suffered from flooding, with severe flooding occurring as recently as 1990. In 1993 a largescale flood alleviation scheme was completed, ending in the banjo shaped 'new jetty' outletting rainwater. This in itself created a new problem, disturbing the natural northward drift of sand up the bay, with a buildup on the southern side and reduction of sand on the northern. This reduction of sand levels exposed the foundations of parts of the seawall threatening to damage it. As a result the beach was improved in 2005/6 by construction of new greenheart timber groynes and the placement of 90,000m³ of sand as beach nourishment .
Governance
Local governance and service provision is provided by, in order of directness - Swanage Town Council, Purbeck District Council and Dorset County Council.
Geography and geology
Swanage is located in Swanage Bay in Dorset on the south coast of England at (50.612, −1.958). The bay is east facing and is situated at the eastern end of the Isle of Purbeck, approximately 10 km south of Poole and 40 km east of Dorchester. The northern headland is formed of chalk, the southern of Purbeck Limestone, with softer primarily Wealdon clays forming the bay and valley in which the town is sited. As noted, the Purbeck limestone was extensively quarried with several sites to the south west showing evidence of former quarries, particularly Tilly Whim Caves and Dancing Ledge, a man made rock shelf used for loading ships. Natural erosion has formed stacks along and at the end of the northern headland, in particular the notable Old Harry Rocks. In part through the process of quarrying, fossils from the dinosaur age have been discovered in the local rock, and as such the coastline up to and including Swanage Bay has been included in the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site.
Economy
Swanage's primary industry is tourism, employing a large number of the working population. However, as with most tourism, the demand level is highly seasonal, and as such people looking for permanent work may have to commute to nearby towns.
The town centre has a number of medium sized outlets for major retailers, a collection of non chain local retailers, a number of cafes, bars, restaurants, pubs and a club. The seafront has two amusement arcades and several ice cream outlets. The town also has a number of successful small scale cottage industries, including a chocolatier(Chococo).
There is a brickworks on the outskirts of the town that uses the Whealdon Clay found in the valley for producing bricks, and quarrying still continues to the south.
Tourism
During the peak summer season many people are drawn by the town's beautiful setting, the beach and other attractions. The town has a large number of hotels and guest rooms though the number (particularly of hotels) has reduced slightly in recent years. Swanage has a gently sloping white sand beach which is sheltered and generally calm. The beach is well served by local businesses providing refreshments and services. For example, there are ice cream outlets, fish restaurants, 'Chip Shops' and cafes. For hire are deck chairs, boats, pedalos and general watersports equipment. There are amusement arcades and parks.
Besides the beach, other attractions including the restored Swanage steam railway and the Victorian pier. The town may also be used a base from which to visit other nearby areas of interest, such as Corfe Castle.
Festivals And Events
The town hosts a number of annual festivals and events. In the summer months there is a carnival week which includes a procession of floats and dancers and several firework displays, and many other attractions and small events including live music from local bands, races and a regatta.
The railway has special Thomas The Tank Engine themed events and other special services.
The town also hosts successful festivals, drawing people from far and wide, including a Jazz Festival, a Folk Festival, a Blues Festival, and there a plans for a Food Festival in the future.
New Year's Eve has traditionally been a big event for Swanage, with the town drawing more people from surrounding areas, and people travelling considerable distances to attend. This was in part thanks to employees of the nearby Wytch Farm oil processing facility. While the popularity of the event has waned somewhat from its peak in the early 1990s, with fewer oil employees in the area, there is still a large gathering each year, spilling out into the square and high street at midnight.
Transport
The main road into Swanage is the A351 which passes through Corfe Castle and to Wareham, and onto the main road A35 to Poole and Bournemouth.
There are bus services provided by Wilts & Dorset, the numbers 40 and 44 which run between Swanage and Poole, and the number 50 which runs between Swanage and Bournemouth via the chain ferry at Sandbanks to Studland. Double-deck open top buses are used on the Poole-Swanage/Bournemouth-Swanage routes in the summer months.
Swanage has a heritage restored steam railway which operates for part of the year, though at the moment this only goes as far as Norden. Recent developments on the railway have seen the physical connection between the Swanage Railway and the mainline restored. The first passenger service in more than 40 years from London Victoria and returning to London Waterloo is scheduled for April 1st 2009. It is hoped that regular passenger services will commence in the future. There are also limited ferry services between Poole Quay and Swanage Pier. These are used by Swanage people for shopping trips to Poole's large shopping centre, and also by tourists in Poole for daytrips into Swanage.
Education
Schools in Purbeck operate as part of a three-tier comprehensive pyramid system. The secondary school at the top of the system is the Purbeck School, in Wareham. In Swanage there are several primary schools and a middle school on the edge of the town at Herston, Swanage Middle School. This is one of several middle schools in Purbeck that feed into the Purbeck School.
There is also a large language school in the town, for foreign students. The school has a large white pressurised dome which serves as a sports hall, which is visible from some distance.
The town has a library in the town centre which is housed in a distinctive 1960's octagonal glass and Purbeck Stone building.
At the square on the seafront there is a small town museum with artifacts and displays recounting the town and surrounding area's history. There was until a recently a second museum housed in the historical Tithe Barn building, however the roof of the building was becoming unsafe, and the artefacts were moved out into safe storage. These may or may not be redisplayed in the future, but for the time being a small number are on display in the museum at the square.
Sport And Recreation
Swanage has a number of teams representing the town in several sports. There is a dedicated football pitch with limited covered seating and associated social club. There is also a joint Swanage & Wareham rugby club, a mens and women's hockey team and a cricket team. Also there is a recently formed, but very popular men, women's and junior sea gig rowing club.
Scuba diving takes place under the piers and at nearby coastal wrecks. Indeed Swanage is considered by many to be the home of British Scuba diving as not only is it one of the most popular sea water training sites for dive schools and clubs to take trainee divers due to the sheltered conditions within the bay, but the dive shop still situated on the pier was the first dive shop ever to open in Great Britain.
There is a sailing club to the immediate south of the pier.
Swanage has a King George's Field in memorial to King George V, which recently became home to a new skate park (which continues to expand though fund raising by locals) and a new hi-tech play area, funded in a similar way to the skate park. Planning applications have been submitted for a sports pavilion.
The sea cliffs and quarries to the west of Swanage provide excellent venues for rock climbing.
Swimming facilities are provided at the Municipal campsite - generally from 8 a.m (adult swimming) and 9 a.m for public swimming until either 6 p.m or 8 p.m. Another pool at Ulwell caravan park is also open to the public as well as running children's swimming lessons and aqua aerobic sessions.
The surrounding areas make for excellent walking and as such the town is a popular destination for hikers who use the town as base. Many beauty spots are in walkable distance, while never being too far from refreshment.
Twinned with
Cultural references
Swanage is stated as the hometown of John Cleese's character Basil Fawlty in the sitcom Fawlty Towers.
James Blunt's video Carry You Home was filmed in Swanage.
In Literature
Swanage is called Knollsea in Thomas Hardy’s novels. In “The Hand of Ethelberta” it is described as “…a seaside village lying snug within two headlands as between a finger and thumb”.
In E.M. Forster's Howards End, Margaret and Mr. Wilcox first kiss there at the end of an evening's stroll.
“The Lady Margaret”, one of the linked short stories in Keith Roberts', Pavane has Swanage as the place where Jesse Strange meets an old school friend and fails to establish a relationship with his childhood sweetheart Margaret.
International artists and writer, Philip Sugden was born and raised in Swanage. He is known for his drawings and paintings of India and Tibet, and his books entitled, "Visions From The Fields of Merit" and, "White Lotus."
See also
Local villages:
Bibliography
- Lewer, David & Smale, Dennis. (2004) Swanage Past. Chichester: Phillimore & Co Ltd
- Cooper, Ilay. (2004). Purbeck Revealed. Bath: James Pembroke Publishing.
- Hardy, Thomas. (1876) The Hand of Ethelberta. (online). The Literature Network. Available from: http://www.online-literature.com/hardy/hand_ethelberta/31/.
- Ward Lock’s (no date). Swanage and South Dorset: Illustrated Guide Books. (Twelfth edition). London: Ward, Locke and Co. Ltd.
External links
Travel information:
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