| Swanage | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
 | |
 Coat of arms of Swanage | |
  Swanage Location within Dorset | |
| Population | 9,601 (2011)[1] |
| OS grid reference | SZ0278 |
| Civil parish |
|
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | SWANAGE |
| Postcode district | BH19 |
| Dialling code | 01929 |
| Police | Dorset |
| Fire | Dorset and Wiltshire |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| UK Parliament | |
Swanage (/ˈswɒnɪdʒ/) is a coastal town and civil parish in the south east of Dorset, England. It is at the eastern end of the Isle of Purbeck and one of its two towns,[2] approximately 6+1⁄4 miles (10 km) south of Poole and 25 miles (40 km) east of Dorchester. In the 2011 census the civil parish had a population of 9,601.[1] Nearby are Ballard Down and Old Harry Rocks, with Studland Bay and Poole Harbour to the north. Within the parish are Durlston Bay and Durlston Country Park to the south of the town. The parish also includes the areas of Herston, just to the west of the town, and Durlston, just to the south.
The town, originally a small port and fishing village, flourished in the Victorian era, when it first became a significant quarrying port and later a seaside resort for the rich of the day. Today the town remains a popular tourist resort, this being the town's primary industry, with many thousands of visitors coming to the town during the peak summer season, drawn by the bay's sandy beaches and other attractions.
During its history the bay was listed variously as Swanawic, Swanwich and Sandwich,[3] and only in more recent history as Swanage.[4]
The town is located at the eastern end of the Jurassic Coast, a World Heritage Site. The town contains many listed buildings and two conservation areas – Swanage Conservation Area and Herston Conservation Area.[5]
- ^ a b UK Census (2011). "Local Area Report – Swanage Parish (1170213485)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
- ^ "OpenStreetMap for Wikipedia - Wikipedia article: Category:Towns_in_Dorset". osm4wiki.toolforge.org.
- ^ National Archives; PROB 11/1835/407; Will of Richard Talbot, Gentleman of Sandwich otherwise Swanage Isle of Purbeck, Dorset; proved: 19 August 1834
- ^ Plea Rolls of the Court of Common Pleas; National Archives; CP 40/541; "AALT Page". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 28 May 2014.; second entry; the plaintiff is Wills. Geyler de Sandewych; (since the entries on this roll have county margination of Somerset, it is reasonable to suppose that Swanage, Dorset is meant, rather than Sandwich, Kent.
- ^ "Dorsetforyou - sorry this link is no longer active - Dorset Council". Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 4 March 2015.