Many of the original buildings in the village of Imber have been demolished, but among the few still standing is Imber Court, now hidden away behind locked gates.

This was the manor house, the social centre of the village for meetings and evening dinners and balls.

The Wadman family were Lords of the Manor in the 17th and 18th centuries.

When the family no longer lived there Richard Tucker from Broadwindsor, near Bridport, ran an academy for young gentlemen there with the aid of two of his sons, Robert and John.

The Deans, a well-known local farming family, were then the were Lords of the Manor for almost all of the 19th century.

Late in the 1800s three of the five farms in the village were being farmed by members of the family. They also provided a churchwarden and served the village in a variety of roles from 1791 to 1919.

The long Dean tenancy of Imber Court came to an end when the house was sold by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners.

Although the building is now reduced to two storeys, traces of its history can still be seen.

There is still a fine avenue of trees in the grounds leading to the kennel, traces of which still remain.

The remains of a lawn which was laid out as a tennis court can also still be seen, together with many of the elaborate outhouses.

Our archive picture was taken around 1920 following its restoration by Thomas Holloway. During these renovations it was destroyed by fire and then rebuilt.