{{Short description|Village in Dorset, England}} {{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}} {{Use British English|date=June 2025}} {{Infobox UK place |country = England |static_image_name = Melbury Osmond parish church, tower detail - geograph.org.uk - 518482.jpg |static_image_caption = Parish church of St Osmund |coordinates = {{coord|50.8674|-2.6062|display=inline,title}} |map_type = Dorset |official_name = Melbury Osmond |population = 199 |population_ref = <ref name=ons>{{cite web|url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadKeyFigures.do?a=7&b=11126456&c=Melbury+Osmond&d=16&e=62&g=6418478&i=1001x1003x1032x1004&o=362&m=0&r=1&s=1380439887369&enc=1|title=Neighbourhood Statistics. Area: Melbury Osmond (Parish). Key Figures for 2011 Census: Key Statistics|publisher=Office for National Statistics|date=|accessdate=29 September 2013}}</ref> |unitary_england = [[Dorset (unitary authority)|Dorset]] |lieutenancy_england = [[Dorset]] |post_town = Dorchester |postcode_area = DT |postcode_district = DT2 |constituency_westminster = [[West Dorset (UK Parliament constituency)|West Dorset]] |region = South West England |os_grid_reference = ST574077 }}
'''Melbury Osmond''' is a village and [[Civil parishes in England|civil parish]] in the [[English county|county]] of [[Dorset]] in southern [[England]]. It lies approximately {{convert|7|mi|km}} south of the [[Somerset]] town of [[Yeovil]]. The underlying geology is [[Cornbrash]] limestone, with adjacent [[Oxford clay]].<ref>{{cite book|author=Ralph Wightman|author-link=Ralph Wightman|title=Portrait of Dorset|publisher=Robert Hale Ltd|year=1983|page=18|edition=4|isbn=0 7090 0844 9}}</ref> Within the clay can be found deposits of stone which can take on a very high polish, earning them the name "Melbury marble".<ref>West Dorset District Council, ''Holiday and Tourist Guide'', c.1983, p13</ref> The village is mentioned in the [[Domesday Book]] as a possession of the Arundell family, and remained so until the 19th century. The parish church, [[Saint Osmund|St. Osmund's]], was totally rebuilt in 1745<ref name=Treves>Treves, Sir F., ''Highways and Byways in Dorset'', Macmillan, 1906, pp322-323</ref> and [[Victorian restoration|restored]] in 1888, although it has registers dating back to 1550. In the [[United Kingdom Census 2011|2011 census]] the parish had a population of 199.<ref name=ons/>
The major part of Melbury Osmond village lies on a [[cul-de-sac]] lane which from the church descends past cottages to a stream and [[Ford (crossing)|ford]]. The attractive appearance of the village has been noted by commentators: it has been described as "a calendarsmith's dream of thatched cottages"<ref>{{cite book|title=Dorset Villages|author=Roland Gant|year=1980|page=104|publisher=Robert Hale Ltd|ISBN=0 7091 8135 3}}</ref> and in 1906 [[Sir Frederick Treves, 1st Baronet|Sir Frederick Treves]] wrote that it was "the most charming village in these Western backwoods".<ref name=Treves/>
In its history the village has been involved in the trade of plated buckles and horn buttons, and the manufacture of [[dowlas]].<ref name=Treves/> During the 19th century, the village was home to the [[Dorset Ooser]], a wooden mask brought out during "[[Rough music|Rough Music]]" ceremonies.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Dewar |first=H. S. L. |title=The Dorset Ooser |journal=Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society |year=1962 |volume=84 |pages=178–180}}</ref>
There are 34 [[listed building|listed]] buildings and structures within the parish, including the Grade II* Old Rectory and the Grade I parish church.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/england/dorset/melbury+osmond/|title=Listed Buildings in Melbury Osmond, Dorset, England|publisher=British Listed Buildings|accessdate=10 July 2012}}</ref>
[[Thomas Hardy]]'s mother lived in Melbury Osmond as a child, and she was married in the church.<ref name=Ayres>{{cite web|url=http://www.dorsetlife.co.uk/2007/10/melbury-osmond/|title=Melbury Osmond|author=Ken Ayres|date=October 2007|accessdate=29 September 2013|publisher=Dorset Life}}</ref> The village appears as "Little Hintock" in Hardy's novel ''[[The Woodlanders]]'', in which the heroine's name is "Grace Melbury". Hardy also incorporated a legend about the [[James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth|Duke of Monmouth]] taking refuge in one of the village's cottages into his short story ''"The Duke's Reappearance"''.<ref name=Ayres/>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *[http://www.melburyosmond.co.uk/Our_Village_1995.aspx Melbury Osmond Parish Council]
{{Commons category|Melbury Osmond}} {{Dorset}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Villages in Dorset]]