River Frome, Dorset
Encyclopedia
The River Frome is a river
in Dorset
in the south of England. At 30 miles (48 km) long it is the major chalkstream in southwest England. It is navigable upstream from Poole Harbour
as far as the town of Wareham
.
at Evershot
, passes through Maiden Newton
, Dorchester, West Stafford
and Woodsford
. At Wareham
it and the River Piddle
, also known as the River Trent, flow into Poole Harbour
via the Wareham Channel. The catchment area is 181 square miles (454 km²) map, approximately one sixth of the county.
East of Dorchester the river runs through unresistant sands, clays and gravels, which would have originally been capped by chalk
which is still extant in the Dorset Downs to the north and Purbeck Hills
to the south. The valley has wide flood plains and marshes and gave the name to the Durotriges
, water dwellers, the Celt
ic tribe of Dorset. The river forms a wide, shallow ria
at its estuary, Poole Harbour.
Prior to the end of the last ice age
the Purbeck Hills
were continuous with the Isle of Wight
and the Frome would have continued east through what is now Poole Harbour and Poole Bay, into The Solent, collecting the Stour
, Beaulieu
, Test
and Itchen
, before flowing into the Channel east of what is now the Isle of Wight.
built a 9 km aqueduct
to supply their new town of Durnovaria
(Dorchester); it started near the modern-day Littlewood Farm, Frampton
, using a stream running from Compton Valence
, and closely follows the contours of the chalk bluff to the southwest of the River Frome. Some traces of the aqueduct terrace can still be seen at Bradford Peverell
and on the Dorchester by-pass. It has been calculated that water would have reached Dorchester at the rate of 13 million gallons per day.
The Danes made frequent raids up the river. The town walls at Wareham were built in 876AD, possibly by Alfred the Great
, to defend the town against this threat.
Until the late 19th century, the river was an important part of the trade route for the export of Purbeck Ball Clay
from the Isle of Purbeck
. Originally the clay was brought to wharves at Wareham by pack horse from the clay pits to the south. In around 1830 the Furzebrook Railway
was built, connecting the pits to a wharf at Ridge
. This route was eventually superseded by the use of the main line rail network, and eventually by road.
The Frome has suffered a dramatic decline in the run of salmon
in recent years. In 1988 over 4000 fish ran the river, by 2004 the run had fallen to 750 fish. This is partly due to obstacles at the Bindon Mill hatches and Louds Mill weir and partly to changed agricultural methods. The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust
is carrying out research at its Salmon & Trout Research Centre at East Stoke
into the decline of Atlantic Salmon
to understand the causes and how to reverse the decline.
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
in 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. At 30 miles (48 km) long it is the major chalkstream in southwest England. It is navigable upstream from Poole Harbour
Poole Harbour
Poole Harbour is a large natural harbour in Dorset, southern England, with the town of Poole on its shores. The harbour is a drowned valley formed at the end of the last ice age and is the estuary of several rivers, the largest being the Frome. The harbour has a long history of human settlement...
as far as the town 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:...
.
Geography
The river rises in the Dorset DownsDorset 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 also includes Cranborne Chase, Salisbury Plain, Hampshire Downs, Chiltern Hills, North Downs and South Downs.The Dorset...
at Evershot
Evershot
Evershot is a village in west Dorset, England, south of Yeovil. It is the second highest village in the county , the centre of the village lying at 175 metres above sea-level. The village has a population of 206...
, passes through Maiden Newton
Maiden Newton
Maiden Newton is a village and civil parish in west Dorset, England, north of Dorchester. Located on the River Frome, the village has a population of 952 , of whom 29.7% are retired. Maiden Newton railway station, which serves the village, is situated on the Heart of Wessex Line...
, Dorchester, West Stafford
West Stafford
West Stafford is a village in south west Dorset, England, situated in the Frome valley two miles east of Dorchester. The village has a population of 270 . It contains 'The Wise Man Inn', which is the village pub, and St Andrew's Church. The river Winterbourne runs beside the village and 2 miles...
and Woodsford
Woodsford
Woodsford is a hamlet in south west Dorset, England, situated in the Frome valley five miles east of Dorchester. The village has a population of 67 ....
. At 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:...
it and the River Piddle
River Piddle
The River Piddle or Trent or North River is a small rural Dorset river which rises next to Alton Pancras church and flows south and then south-easterly more or less parallel with its bigger neighbour, the River Frome, to Wareham, where they both enter Poole Harbour via...
, also known as the River Trent, flow into Poole Harbour
Poole Harbour
Poole Harbour is a large natural harbour in Dorset, southern England, with the town of Poole on its shores. The harbour is a drowned valley formed at the end of the last ice age and is the estuary of several rivers, the largest being the Frome. The harbour has a long history of human settlement...
via the Wareham Channel. The catchment area is 181 square miles (454 km²) map, approximately one sixth of the county.
East of Dorchester the river runs through unresistant sands, clays and gravels, which would have originally been capped by chalk
Chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous sedimentary rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite. Calcite is calcium carbonate or CaCO3. It forms under reasonably deep marine conditions from the gradual accumulation of minute calcite plates shed from micro-organisms called coccolithophores....
which is still extant in the Dorset Downs to the north and Purbeck Hills
Purbeck Hills
The Purbeck Hills and South Dorset Downs are a ridge of chalk downs in Dorset, England. The hills extend from the Dorset Downs west of Dorchester, where the River Frome begins to form a valley dividing them from the larger area of downland to the north. The ridge then runs east through the Isle...
to the south. The valley has wide flood plains and marshes and gave the name to the Durotriges
Durotriges
The Durotriges were one of the Celtic tribes living in Britain prior to the Roman invasion. The tribe lived in modern Dorset, south Wiltshire and south Somerset...
, water dwellers, the Celt
Celt
The Celts were a diverse group of tribal societies in Iron Age and Roman-era Europe who spoke Celtic languages.The earliest archaeological culture commonly accepted as Celtic, or rather Proto-Celtic, was the central European Hallstatt culture , named for the rich grave finds in Hallstatt, Austria....
ic tribe of Dorset. The river forms a wide, shallow ria
Ria
A ria is a coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley. It is a drowned river valley that remains open to the sea. Typically, rias have a dendritic, treelike outline although they can be straight and without significant branches. This pattern is inherited from the...
at its estuary, Poole Harbour.
Prior to the end of the last ice age
Ice age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
the Purbeck Hills
Purbeck Hills
The Purbeck Hills and South Dorset Downs are a ridge of chalk downs in Dorset, England. The hills extend from the Dorset Downs west of Dorchester, where the River Frome begins to form a valley dividing them from the larger area of downland to the north. The ridge then runs east through the Isle...
were continuous with the Isle of Wight
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
and the Frome would have continued east through what is now Poole Harbour and Poole Bay, into The Solent, collecting 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...
, Beaulieu
Beaulieu River
The Beaulieu River , formerly known as the River Exe, is a small river flowing south through the New Forest in the county of Hampshire in southern England. The river is some long, of which the last are tidal...
, Test
River Test
The River Test is a river in Hampshire, England. The river has a total length of 40 miles and it flows through downland from its source near Ashe, 10 km to the west of Basingstoke , to the sea at the head of Southampton Water...
and Itchen
River Itchen, Hampshire
The River Itchen is a river in Hampshire, England. It flows from mid-Hampshire to join with Southampton Water below the Itchen Bridge in the city of Southampton. The river has a total length of , and is noted as one of England's - if not one of the World's - premier chalk streams for fly fishing,...
, before flowing into the Channel east of what is now the Isle of Wight.
History
The RomansRoman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
built a 9 km aqueduct
Aqueduct
An aqueduct is a water supply or navigable channel constructed to convey water. In modern engineering, the term is used for any system of pipes, ditches, canals, tunnels, and other structures used for this purpose....
to supply their new town of Durnovaria
Durnovaria
Durnovaria is the Latin form of the Brythonic name for the Roman town of Dorchester in the modern English county of Dorset.-Romans at Maiden Castle:...
(Dorchester); it started near the modern-day Littlewood Farm, Frampton
Frampton, Dorset
Frampton is a village in west Dorset, England, situated in the Frome valley three miles north west of Dorchester at . The village has a population of 456 , 6.9% of dwellings are second homes ....
, using a stream running from Compton Valence
Compton Valence
Compton Valence is a hamlet in west Dorset, England, six miles west of Dorchester. The village has a population of 63 .- External links :*...
, and closely follows the contours of the chalk bluff to the southwest of the River Frome. Some traces of the aqueduct terrace can still be seen at Bradford Peverell
Bradford Peverell
Bradford Peverell is a village in west Dorset, England, situated in the Frome valley two miles north west of Dorchester on the A37 road. The village has a population of 344 .- External links :*...
and on the Dorchester by-pass. It has been calculated that water would have reached Dorchester at the rate of 13 million gallons per day.
Alfred the Great
Alfred the Great was King of Wessex from 871 to 899.Alfred is noted for his defence of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of southern England against the Vikings, becoming the only English monarch still to be accorded the epithet "the Great". Alfred was the first King of the West Saxons to style himself...
, to defend the town against this threat.
Until the late 19th century, the river was an important part of the trade route for the export of 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...
from 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...
. Originally the clay was brought to wharves at Wareham by pack horse from the clay pits to the south. In around 1830 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...
was built, connecting the pits to a wharf at 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....
. This route was eventually superseded by the use of the main line rail network, and eventually by road.
The Frome has suffered a dramatic decline in the run of salmon
Salmon
Salmon is the common name for several species of fish in the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the same family are called trout; the difference is often said to be that salmon migrate and trout are resident, but this distinction does not strictly hold true...
in recent years. In 1988 over 4000 fish ran the river, by 2004 the run had fallen to 750 fish. This is partly due to obstacles at the Bindon Mill hatches and Louds Mill weir and partly to changed agricultural methods. The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust
Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust
The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust is a British charitable organisation, principally associated with the shooting industry, promoting game and wildlife management as an essential part of nature conservation...
is carrying out research at its Salmon & Trout Research Centre at East Stoke
East Stoke, Dorset
East Stoke is a village in the Purbeck district of the English county of Dorset. It is situated some three miles west of Wareham. The village has a population of 439...
into the decline of Atlantic Salmon
Atlantic salmon
The Atlantic salmon is a species of fish in the family Salmonidae, which is found in the northern Atlantic Ocean and in rivers that flow into the north Atlantic and the north Pacific....
to understand the causes and how to reverse the decline.
See also
- Other River FromeFrome (disambiguation)- Relating to the Somerset town :* Frome railway station* Frome Community College* Frome * Somerton and Frome * Frome Town F.C.* Frome Festival-Australia:...
s - Rivers of the United Kingdom
- Geology of DorsetGeology of DorsetDorset, England, rests on a variety of different rock types which give the county its interesting landscapes and habitats. Dorset is particularly noted for its coastline, the Jurassic Coast, which in 2001 was designated a World Heritage Site because of the variety of landforms and fossils...
External links
- Map and aerial photo sources for: near EvershotEvershotEvershot is a village in west Dorset, England, south of Yeovil. It is the second highest village in the county , the centre of the village lying at 175 metres above sea-level. The village has a population of 206...
, source of the , a tributary and in Poole Harbour. - Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust Wild Salmon Recovery Project
- Frome, Piddle & West Dorset Fisheries Association