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Maryland Village
The furthest west end of the island is the site of the village of Maryland. Built by Colonel Waugh for his pottery workers in 1853, and named after the Colonel’s wife Mary, the village used to consist of 20 dwellings, in 5 buildings which were arranged in a crescent.
There are a number of reasons why the houses aren’t here today. During Mary Bonham-Christie’s ownership of the island, she evicted the majority of the island residents, and Maryland was left empty. In 1934, a huge island fire damaged the buildings, and then during the Second World War, Brownsea Island was used as a decoy to distract German bombers away from the mainland. German bombers may have been seeking Poole, or the cordite factory at Holton Heath. Maryland became very damaged and unsafe, so the buildings were demolished in 1964. All that remains now are the outlines of the buildings and piles of bricks. Elsewhere on the island, you can see bomb craters as more evidence of the island’s role in wartime.
Site of Maryland
Site of Maryland
The 1881 census reveals that 117 people lived there. As well as homes, there was a pub at No.1 Maryland, which became known as the Bentinck Arms, a small shop and a skittle alley.
Footprint of Bentinck Arms
Footprint of Numbers 1-4 Maryland
Even after the pottery closed, islanders still lived at Maryland, and began working in other jobs on the island, including the farm and the daffodil industry in the 20th century. Some families remained on the island for generations, such as the Toms family; you can find out more about these in the Visitors centre on the island. Jack Battrick also lived here for a time, and he wrote about his life on Brownsea Island in his book, Brownsea Islander (1978).
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