Wraxall, Dorset Explained

Static Image:Lower Wraxall Church - geograph.org.uk - 160876.jpg
Static Image Width:237px
Static Image Caption:Church of St Mary, Lower Wraxall
Country:England
Coordinates:50.8056°N -2.6059°W
Map Type:Dorset
Official Name:Wraxall
Population:40
Population Ref:[1]
Unitary England:Dorset
Shire County:Dorset
Post Town:Dorchester
Postcode Area:DT
Postcode District:DT2
Constituency Westminster:West Dorset
Region:South West England
Os Grid Reference:ST572012

Wraxall is a civil parish in the English county of Dorset, consisting of the two hamlets Higher Wraxall and Lower Wraxall. It is situated in a valley in the chalk hills of the Dorset Downs, about 11miles north-west of the county town Dorchester. Dorset County Council's 2013 mid-year estimate of the parish population is 40.[1]

The origin of the name Wraxall, shared with several other villages in Somerset, Wiltshire and Dorset, is thought to be "a nook of land frequented by buzzards".[2]

St Mary's Church is the most noticeable building in the parish.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Parish Population Data. Dorset County Council. 20 January 2015. 21 March 2015.
  2. http://www.bafhs.org.uk/parishes/wraxall/wraxall.htm Bristol & Avon Family History Society