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from British wit, meaning a wood), Winterborne Kingston (once the 

 property of King John), Winterborne Anderson (St. Andrew's tun), 

 Winterborne Thomson (Thomas' tun), and Winterborne Zelstone 

 (the tun of Sell, a Saxon) ; the Allen or Wim gives us Wimborne 

 St. Giles (church dedicated to this saint), and Wimborne Minster, 

 that is, the church on the clear stream, the word Wimborne being 

 a hybrid from the Celtic, Win, meaning white or clear, and the 

 Saxon burne, a stream. It is interesting to note that Winfrith also 

 means the place on the clear stream, but in this case the name is 

 purely Celtic, the first syllable being derived from the same source 

 as that in W T imborne, and the latter from ffrdd, a stream. The 

 Crane, so called from its winding, resembling the neck of a crane, 

 gives us Cranborne, and the Moors, West Moors. 



Turning to the Puddle or Trent, we have Puddletrenthide 

 (thirty hides of ground), Puddlehinton, Puddletown, Tolpuddle, 

 formerly Tola's Puddle, Tola being a great officer under Canute, 

 Aff puddle (AfFa was a Saxon owner), Toner's Puddle (the Toners 

 held it in the reign of Edward I., paying a yearly rental of eight 

 pence to that monarch), and Brian's Puddle, formerly owned by 

 Brian de Turbervill, the ancestor of the family immortalised in 

 Hardy's " Tess." 



The Frome gives us Frome St. Quinton (Quintons were the 

 lords of the manor in the reign of Richard I.), Chilfrome (S. celi % 

 meaning cold), Frome Vauchurch, Frampton and Frome Whitfield 

 (the Whitfields owned it in Richard I.'s reign). 



The Frome has two tributaries, viz., the Cerne and the 

 Winterborne, which supply us with many names. The Cerne gives 

 us Upcerne (Upper Cerne), Cerne Abbas, the latter word referring 

 to the abbey, Nether Cerne (Lower Cerne), and Charminster. The 

 Winterborne gives us Winterborne Abbas, the place formerly 

 belonging to the abbey at Cerne, Winterborne Steepleton, Winter- 

 borne St. Martin (church dedicated to St. Martin), Winterborne 

 Monkton, which formerly belonged to the priory of Wost or Le 

 Vast, near Boulogne, and Winterborne Came which was at one time 

 in the hands of the abbey at Caen, in Normandy. From the Wey 

 we get Upwey, Broadwey and Weymouth, names which explain 

 themselves. The Bredy gives us Bridehead, the place where the 

 river rises, Little Bredy, Long Bredy, and Burton Bradstock (S., 

 stocce, means a wood). The Brid supplies Bridport, the Char, 

 Charmouth, the Lyme, Lyme Regis, a place formerly in the hands 

 of the Crown, while the Parrot gives us South Perrott. 



Many places obtain their names from the fords which existed 

 near them, e.g., on the Stour we have Childe Okeford (S., cite, 

 meaning cold, and Okeford because of the oaks which grew near), 

 Okeford Fitzpaine (Robert Fitzpaine owned it in the reign of 

 Edward I.), Blandford and Canford; on the Frome we find Bradford 

 Peverel, Bradford meaning the broad ford and the Peverels having 

 been the ancient owners, Fordington, Stinsford (Stint or Staen was 

 an owner in ancient times), West Stafford, formerly Stanford, or 

 strong ford, and Woodsford, a very famous ford and protected by a, 



