landmark
Stourhead
One of the world's finest landscape gardens with a magnificent lake, classical temples and a stunning Palladian mansion in Wiltshire.
3 km · about 5 min drive
EuropeUnited KingdomEngland
Bourton
England, United Kingdom · Europe
About Bourton
Bourton works well as a base: 10 minutes from Mere, 12km from Gold Hill, Shaftesbury.
Bourton is in England, United Kingdom, with about 1,500 people. You drive on the left here. The nearest town is Mere, about 5 km away.
Bourton is a village and civil parish in north Dorset, England, situated north of the A303 road on the border with Somerset and Wiltshire between Mere and Wincanton. The parish is the most northerly in Dorset and in the 2021 census had a population of 947. The village lies on the River Stour which passes through theRead more
historic Bourton Mill, once home to the second largest water wheel in Britain (60 feet (18 m) in diameter) .
The village has a store, a petrol station and a public house. The White Lion Inn stands on the High Street, which leads off what was the old main London to Exeter road before the village was bypassed to the south in 1992 by the A303. St George's Church, which stands on one of the highest points in the village, was built via public subscription in 1810 and borders the primary school of the same name.
The point at which the counties of Dorset, Somerset and Wiltshire meet beside the lake at the rear of Bourton Mill is marked by Egbert's Stone which once fell into the River Stour, but was rescued and re-erected. In 878 it formed the rallying point for Alfred the Great's troops before the Battle of Ethandun. His grandfather, Egbert of Wessex, was said to have placed the stone there to settle the shire boundaries. Just over the county border is King Alfred's Tower.
The mill, which is mentioned in the Domesday Book, has had many incarnations. As a linen mill it processed flax and supplied canvas to the Royal Navy but when industry declined it was developed into a foundry with a blast furnace and was one of the first places to make the new threshing machines in the West of England. It went on to build boilers, steam lorries and gas engines as well as gaining a reputation as a builder of water wheels. During the First World War Mills bombs were produced here in vast quantities. After the Gasper dam burst upriver in the summer of 1917, much of the machinery was washed from the factory and it took a number of years for industry to restart on the site. When it did return in 1933 the factory entered its final phase as a dried milk processing plant and this continued up until its closure in 1998. It has now been demolished to make way for the Mill Lake development.
Chaffeymoor House, located in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty at Chaffeymoor, is a large 17th-century house. It is a grade II listed building. Its gardens are open to the public.
The nearest railway station is in neighbouring Gillingham. Trains run on the Exeter to Waterloo line.
Where to Stay in Bourton
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is there to see near Bourton?
Within an hour or so of Bourton: Stourhead (3 km), Stourhead (Pride and Prejudice proposal) (3 km), Gold Hill, Shaftesbury (12 km), Haynes International Motor Museum (17 km).
Are there any good drives near Bourton?
The nearest famous roads are Cheddar Gorge Road (B3135), Rhinefield Ornamental Drive and A466 Wye Valley (Chepstow to Monmouth).
Where is Bourton?
Bourton is in England, United Kingdom, about 5 km from Mere.
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Quick Information
- Population
- 1,480
- Continent
- Europe
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Region
- England
- Timezone
- Europe/London
- Coordinates
- 51.0744, -2.3278
Emergency & Services
Essential numbers in United Kingdom
112 also works. NHS non-emergency medical advice: 111. National Highways breakdown assistance on motorways: 0300 123 5000.
Full driving guide for United KingdomTags
Worth the detour from Bourton
8 notable places within an hour's drive.
film location
Stourhead (Pride and Prejudice proposal)
The Palladian bridge and Temple of Apollo in Stourhead's landscape garden host Darcy's rain-soaked first proposal in the 2005 film.
3 km · about 5 min drive
photogenic
Gold Hill, Shaftesbury
Steep cobbled street lined with thatched cottages, plunging past the buttressed walls of Shaftesbury Abbey with views over Blackmore Vale. Made famous by Ridley Scott's 1973 Hovis bread advert.
12 km · about 20 min drive
museum
Haynes International Motor Museum
The UK's largest collection of classic and vintage cars and motorcycles, with over 400 vehicles on display.
17 km · about 20 min drive
landmark
Westbury White Horse
The oldest of Wiltshire's chalk horses, cut into the escarpment below the Iron Age hillfort of Bratton Camp.
24 km · about 30 min drive
racetrack
Gurston Down Motorsport Hillclimb
A 1,000-yard chalk downland hillclimb in Wiltshire with a fearsome uphill Karousel corner, run by enthusiasts since 1967 and one of the best places in Britain to watch sprint cars up close.
25 km · about 30 min drive
landmark
Glastonbury Tor
Mystical terraced hill crowned by St Michael's Tower, steeped in Arthurian and early Christian legends with panoramic Somerset views.
27 km · about 30 min drive
cathedral
Wells Cathedral
Exquisite Early English Gothic cathedral with a magnificent sculpted west front displaying nearly 300 medieval figures.
27 km · about 30 min drive
Driving roads near Bourton
5 named roads, passes and coastal drives within 100km.
- 38 kmCheddar Gorge ViewpointEngland's largest gorge with 450-foot limestone cliffs, offering jaw-dropping views from several pull-off points along the winding road.
- 38 kmCheddar Gorge Road (B3135)The B3135 threads the floor of England's largest gorge beneath 137m limestone cliffs, tight and dramatic but often busy with visitors and goats.
- 47 kmClifton Suspension BridgeIsambard Kingdom Brunel's iconic 1864 suspension bridge soaring 75m above the Avon Gorge at Bristol, still carrying traffic and glowing with lights after dark.
- 52 kmGolden CapThe highest point on England's south coast at 191 m, its sandstone summit glowing gold above Charmouth and Lyme Bay.
Driving in United Kingdom
- Drives on
- the left
- Petrol
- ~€1.73/litre
- Motorway tolls
- None
When to drive here
April to October
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