Portland
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Portland |
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 An
old postcard of Fortuneswell, courtesy of Mark Houseby |
Portland is a peninsula of only 4½ mile length, off the south Dorset coast. It is almost cut off from the land, only being connected by the shingle bank known as Chesil Beach. The island is one mass of stone which is world renowned, the quarries have been in continuous use since the start of the 17thC and famous buildings such as St Paul's Cathedral and the Houses of Parliament are built from Portland Stone. Portland Castle was erected in 1520. In 1847 a breakwater over two miles long was constructed to provide a very sheltered harbour to the north of the isle. |
| The long history of the isle is inextricably linked with quarrying, shipping and the navy and fishing. The convict prison at one time housed 900 hundred inmates, many of whom worked in the quarries. St Andrew's Church which was erected in 1487 fell into ruins in Victorian times and a chapel of ease replaced it in 1879. St George's was built in 1706. The lower church of St John was erected in 1839. There were several Methodist chapels and there is a Catholic church. In 1861 the population was 8466 and in 1891 was 9443. | |
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| Census | To date
complete census are on-line for 1841 1851 1861 1871 Fortunes Well - part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, 1871 Chisel & Castleton 1871 Reforne, Weston, Southwell, Wakeham, Easton P1, Easton P2, Easton P3, Portland Prison 1891 Fortunes Well - part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4 |
| Parish Registers | St George's
Church Baptisms 1780-1799, 1800-1812, 1813-1824, 1825-1834, 1835-1844, 1845-1854, 1855-1864, 1865-1880 St George's Church Marriages 1813-1824, 1825-1844, 1845-1852 St George's Church Burials 1780-1812, 1813-1824, 1825-1844, 1845-1864, 1865-1880 Independent Chapel, Chiswell Baptisms, 1829 - 1837. St John the Baptist Church Baptisms 1847-1880 & Burials 1847-1880 St Peter's Church Baptisms 1872-1880 Portland Strays - Baptisms from Weymouth & Melcombe Regis |
| Portland in 1837 | A Week in the Isle of Portland in 1837 - An article from the Penny Magazine, with woodcut illustrations |
| Portland in 1848 | An Excursion to Portland circa 1848 |
| Portland in 1858 | An Article on Portland in 1858 from a publication by Charles Dickens |
| Postal & Commercial Directories | Pigots 1844, Hunts 1851, Harrod's Directory's 1865 and Kelly's Directory 1895 |
| Portland Year Book 1905 | A Link to Paul Benyon's Transcription of this book. |
| Place Names | A list of Place Names |
| Photographs | Portland
From Old Postcards 1 Portland from Old Postcards 2. The Images of Dorset web site provides good photos of Portland 1 & Portland 2 |
| Wills | Wills, Administrations & Inventories |
| Monumental Inscriptions | Some Monumental Inscriptions from St George's |
| Maps | The 1891 ordnance survey maps of the parish can be seen at the old-maps site, just enter 'Portland' under place search. |
| The excellent photographs below are courtesy of the FreeFoto.Com web site, there are more Portland photos on their site. | For modern
location maps visit:-
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 Chesil Beach |
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