Fordingbridge Tourist Guide Rockbourne Roman Villa Hampshire

Fordingbridge Tourist Information Hampshire

Fordingbridge is a traditional market town in West Hampshire near the Dorset border. It grew up around a fording point and was a textile centre in the eighteenth century. Fordingbridge is situated on the River Avon and isn't far from the New Forest National Park.

Fordingbridge has a much photographed seven arched bridge over the river. Nearby there's a park where you can take riverside walks. St Mary's Church in Fordingbridge is mentioned in the Domesday Book and has had successive architectural additions by the Normans and Saxons. What you see today is very much what the church would have looked like in the sixteenth century. In the churchyard is a memorial to the last man in England to be killed in a duel, John Alexander Seton.

Fordingbridge has a Visitor Information Centre in King's Yard. It's open between May-September Mon-Sat 10am-4pm.

Fordingbridge Visitor Centre Kings Yard, Salisbury Street, Fordingbridge SP6 1AB. Tel: 01425 654560. Fax: 01425 654560.

Fordingbridge Museum - Augustus John Exhibition

Near the Visitor Centre is Fordingbridge Museum which is housed in the old granary and contains a collection of artefacts ranging from blacksmith's and cobblers' tools to a restored Victorian doll's house. Through the museum's collections you can find out all about local history of the Fordingbridge area.

The museum also tells the story of local anti-heroes Captain Jack Diamond and Augustus John. Captain Jack Diamond was a notorious smuggler in the eighteenth century who spent much of his time in Fordingbridge when not smuggling. He was eventually captured in Fordingbridge and then executed in Winchester!

Augustus John was considered the greatest artist of his generation although seen to be a bit eccentric. He led a nomadic lifestyle and insisted on growing a beard which through his connections he was allowed to keep during his service in World War I - the only officer in the Allied Forces except King George V to have a beard! As Britain's leading portrait painter his subjects included Thomas Hardy, George Bernard Shaw and T E Lawrence. He spent the last thirty one years of this life in Fordingbridge and there's a commemorative statue of his beside the bridge.

The Museum is open between Easter to the end of October, Mon-Sat 11am-4pm. There is no admission fee but it is run by volunteers so donations keep it going. Tel: 01425 655222. Email: fb-museum@btconnect.com.

Rockbourne Roman Villa

Out in the countryside north west of Fordingbridge is Rockbourne Roman Villa. The site has revealed traces of habitation from the Iron Age up until the fifth century AD.

It was was once at the centre of a farming estate with bath houses, living quarters, farm buildings and workshops. Visiting the site you can see fantastic mosaic floors and the underfloor heating system as well as the outline of the villa's forty rooms.

The site was discovered in 1942 by a farmer who was digging out a ferret! He uncovered oyster shells and tiles and when he got a local amateur archaeologist involved they realised they'd discovered something special. Excavations have revealed a wealth of artefacts and even skeletons buried on the site. You can view some of the artefacts in the museum on site.

The site is open between March and September and there's a small admission fee. Click the link right for more information and its location.

Avon Valley Path

The Avon Valley Path actually starts at Salisbury in Wiltshire and travels 34 miles south through Hampshire and then on to Christchurch in Dorset. The path passes through Fordingbridge.

The route is sub-divided into five sections which taken individually make a good day out walking. The Avon is a chalk river with abundant wildlife along its banks including water and hay meadows, ditches and streams which are excellent for birdwatching.

You can download The Avon River Path from the link right.