Welcome to Beaminster!

The town stands at the head of the valley of the River Brit where many tributaries join together, and the streets tend to follow the line of the streams which in earlier times flowed above ground in many parts. The earliest recorded version (possibly 7th century) of the name Beaminster is BEBINGMYNSTER, and the most likely meaning is Church of BEBBE, this being a female personal name. No trace has so far been found, however, of the early minster church; the existing church, St. Mary’s, is basically 15th century with a little 13th-century work. Contact the Friends of St. Mary's Church for information on the future maintenance of the Church.A charter was granted in 1284 for a weekly market all day Thursday and a three-day annual fair in September, and by the end of medieval times the agricultural settlement had certainly grown into a little town, with a stepped cross in the centre of its market-place. Prosperity came through the manufacture of wool cloth and in the 17th century there was a fine market house on stone arched pillars. Hemp and flax manufactures also developed – sailcloth, sackcloth, shoe-thread, rope and twine. Many other small industries were carried on, for example paper-making, printing, potteries and metal-working, but the buildings have since been pulled down or adapted for different uses.Strongly Parliamentarian, the town was devastated in 1644 in a fire started by the occupying Royalist army; in 1684 the centre was severely burnt through an accidental fire. The finest 17th-century houses are to be found on the fringe of the town where they escaped the fires. A further fire in 1781 affected Church Street, Hogshill Street and Shadrack Street, and the centre of Beaminster today has a largely late-18th-century and early-19th-century appearance.

The population declined after 1841 when the industries failed, the railway did not come near the town, and the flight from the land led to a great fall in numbers employed in agriculture. Growth has taken place since the last War and the population today is about 2,800.