The former town of Milton (or Middleton) in

Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...

, England was cleared by the local landowner, Joseph Damer, Lord Milton, in the 1770s. This was a result of a fashion amongst English landowners to improve the amenity of their homes by converting surrounding farmland into open parkland. Where buildings were deemed to spoil the view, they were removed, including villages and towns, as in the case of Milton. Damer's former residence, Milton Abbey, is now occupied by

Milton Abbey School Milton Abbey School is a private school for day and boarding pupils in the village of Milton Abbas, near Blandford Forum in Dorset, in South West England. It has 224 pupils , in five houses: Athelstan, Damer, Hambro, Hodgkinson and Tregonwell. ...

History

A church, dedicated to Saint Sampson, was founded at Milton in the reign of King Athelstan (who also granted an annual fair). It was said to be a gesture of

atonement Atonement, atoning, or making amends is the concept of a person taking action to correct previous wrongdoing on their part, either through direct action to undo the consequences of that act, equivalent action to do good for others, or some othe ...

for the death of the King's brother,

Edwin The name Edwin means "wealth-friend". It comes from (wealth, good fortune) and (friend). Thus the Old English form is Ēadwine, a name widely attested in early medieval England. Edwina is the feminine form of the name. Notable people and char ...

, in 933 and it was endowed with

relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains or personal effects of a saint or other person preserved for the purpose of veneration as a tangible memorial. Reli ...

s. In 964, the church was handed over to the

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

s and a monastery was established there until 11 March 1539, when closed during the general Dissolution of the Monasteries by

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...

. Henry subsequently sold the estate to

John Tregonwell Sir John Tregonwell (died 1565) was a Cornish jurist, a principal agent of Henry VIII of England, Henry VIII and Thomas Cromwell in the Dissolution of the Monasteries. He served as Judge of the High Court of Admiralty from 1524 to 1536.C.S. Gilb ...

in February, 1540. A grammar school was established on the site in 1521. The town of

Milton, Massachusetts Milton is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Milton is an immediate southern suburb of Boston, Massachusetts. The population was 28,630 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Milton is located in the relatively hilly ...

, incorporated in 1662, was named for Milton; it is one of a number of settlements in that part of Massachusetts named for Dorset towns. After several changes of ownership, the estate, including the town, the former monastery and its church were acquired in 1752 by Joseph Damer. Milton was a

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rura ...

with

almshouse An almshouse (also known as a bede-house, poorhouse, or hospital) is charitable housing provided to people in a particular community, especially during the Middle Ages. They were often built for the poor of a locality, for those who had held ce ...

s, a

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a Latin school, school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented Se ...

, brewery, prosperous traders and

inn Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway. Before the advent of motorized transportation, they also provided accomm ...

s. Nonetheless, having persuaded, by what means is not always clear, the inhabitants to vacate (many were rehoused at the nearby new settlement of

Milton Abbas Milton Abbas is a village and civil parish in Dorset, England, lying around southwest of Blandford Forum. In the 2011 Census the civil parish had a population of 755. This planned community was built after the old Town was demolished in the 1 ...

), Damer had the entire town demolished. This was substantially complete by 1776. A remaining tenant, William Harrison, successfully resisted the clearance and Damer had to wait for his death. Institutions such as the almshouses were moved to Milton Abbas, as were materials from demolished buildings, but the grammar school survived until 1785 when an Act of Parliament sponsored by Damer obliged the school to move to

Blandford Forum Blandford Forum ( ) is a market town in Dorset, England, on the River Stour, Dorset, River Stour, north-west of Poole. It had a population of 10,355 at the United Kingdom 2021 census, 2021 census. The town is notable for its Georgian archit ...

References

{{Reflist Former populated places in Dorset History of Dorset