IChurch · listed 1950Sherborne AbbeyOn the list as Abbey Church of St MaryPhoto: Isis · CC BY-SA 3.0
Abbey Church of St Mary · Photo: Isis · CC BY-SA 3.0A+History Grade
History of Sherborne · Historic England
377 listed buildings, 12 of them Grade I
Historic England counts them inside Sherborne’s built-up area, 364 for every 10,000 residents. It also has 2 scheduled monuments. 26% of its homes were built before 1919. We have photos of 14 of its listed buildings. Sherborne grades A+ for history: #2 of 30 in Dorset.
Listed buildings
377
364 per 10,000 residents
Grade I
12
exceptional interest
Grade II*
16
more than special interest
Scheduled monuments
2
nationally important sites
Homes built before 1919
26%
typical UK town 15%
In pictures
Sherborne in 14 photos
Tap a photo to step through them full screen.
Sherborne HouseGrade I listed
Former Hospital of Saints John the Baptist and John the EvangelistGrade I listed
Castleton MillGrade II listed
Britannia InnGrade II listed
Saints John Building (The Parade) Comprising No 92 Cheap Street (Premises Occupied by Senior and Goodwin) and Premises Occupied by R E Bath Travel ServicesGrade II listed+9See all photosPhotos from Wikimedia Commons and Geograph, copied to our own server, each credited to its photographer with its licence; names open the building’s page or its official list entry.
The map
Where Sherborne’s history is
Every Grade I and II* building, monument and historic park, over the age of each neighbourhood’s homes.
Grade IGrade II*Scheduled monument400 m from Abbey Grange
Homes built before 1919, by neighbourhoodunder 10%10–25%25–50%50%+
12 of 12Grade I buildings stand within 400 m of Abbey Grange, a five-minute walk. So do 260 of the 377 listed buildings.
2 of 7neighbourhoods have mostly pre-1919 homes; in the oldest, 68% were built before 1919.
Hover a dot for its name; tap one with a photo to open it.
377 listed buildings by grade
12 Grade I16 Grade II*349 Grade II
Historic England lists buildings in three grades: Grade I for buildings of exceptional interest (about 2.5% of all listed buildings), Grade II* for particularly important buildings of more than special interest (about 5.8%), and Grade II for buildings of special interest (about 91.7%). Listing protects the whole building, inside and out.
Every entry on the National Heritage List for England whose point lies inside the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary. One list entry can cover a terrace or a group of buildings. Neighbourhood dots: the population-weighted centre of each Census 2021 output area, coloured by its neighbourhood’s (LSOA’s) share of homes built before 1919 (Valuation Office Agency, March 2025).
Grade I
The 12 Grade I listed buildings in Sherborne
Buildings of exceptional interest, about 2.5% of all listed buildings; 12 of these stand within 400 m of Abbey Grange. 6 are photographed. Each opens its own page, with the official list entry.
IHouse · listed 1950Sherborne House, DorsetOn the list as Sherborne HousePhoto: Steinsky · CC BY-SA 3.0
IPublic · listed 1950St Johns' HouseOn the list as Former Hospital of Saints John the Baptist and John the EvangelistPhoto: Ronald Searle · CC BY-SA 2.0
IPublic · listed 1950Library at Sherborne SchoolPhoto: Fuseemusee · CC BY-SA 4.0
IWalls & gates · listed 1950The Cemetery GatePhoto: Sarah Smith · CC BY-SA 2.0
IWalls & gates · listed 1950The ConduitOn the list as The Conduit (The Parade)Photo: Joe D and User:Hogweard · CC BY-SA 3.0
Church · listed 1950Abbey Grange
Public · listed 1950Chapel at Sherborne School
Public · listed 1950Part of Sherborne School on Exterior of North Transept of Abbey Church
Public · listed 1950School House Dining Hall at Sherborne Hall
Public · listed 1950School House Studies at Sherborne School
House · listed 2008Sherborne Shell House in Walled Garden of Harper House
Grade II*
The 16 Grade II* listed buildings in Sherborne
Particularly important buildings of more than special interest. 5 are photographed.
II*House · listed 1950AbbeylandsPhoto: Jo and Steve Turner · CC BY-SA 2.0
II*Church · listed 1950Church of St Mary MagdalenePhoto: Chris Downer · CC BY-SA 2.0
II*Church · listed 1950Former Church HouseOn the list as Former Church House (Comprises Premises Occupied by W Warr, Tobbaconist Premises Occupied by Pedley and White Premises Occupied by John Isaacs)Photo: Chris Downer · CC BY-SA 2.0
II*House · listed 1950Former Hospice of Saint JulianPhoto: Maigheach-gheal · CC BY-SA 2.0
II*Inns & shops · listed 1950Old Bank HousePhoto: Jo and Steve Turner · CC BY-SA 2.0
House · listed 1950Emerenciana
Walls & gates · listed 1973Gates and Gate Piers at South entrance to Abbey Close
House · listed 1950Greenhill House
House · listed 1973No 101 Including Outbuilding to South-East
Public · listed 1950No 9 (Digby Estate Office) Including the Railings. No 11
Public · listed 1950Oak Room at Sherborne School
House · listed 1950Riverside. Riverside Lodge. Riverside Works.
Show the other 4
House · listed 1973The CedarsOn the list as The Cedars and East Cedars
House · listed 1950The Parade
Walls & gates · listed 1950The Red House, forecourt walls and railings, and Grey Lodge
House · listed 1950Tudor Rose
What’s protected
Most of Sherborne’s listed buildings are homes
Every listed building sorted by what its list name says it is.
Houses, terraces & villas251
Walls, gates & bridges52
Public & civic buildings35
Inns, shops & warehouses21
Churches, chapels & priories10
Street furniture5
Memorials, crosses & tombs3
251 entries (67%) are houses, terraces and villas. 10 are churches, chapels and priories, including 2 of the 12 Grade I buildings.
Buildings are sorted by words in each entry’s name (church, gate, inn, memorial…): the list’s open data has no building type. An entry named only by its address counts as a house.
Grade II
349 Grade II listed buildings
Most listed buildings are in this grade, which covers buildings of special interest. Open any building to read its official list entry.
The first 150 of 349 Grade II listed buildings, A to Z
Abbey Close CottageAbbey HouseAbbot's FeeAbbot's LittenAcre HouseAlpine and The CottageAmblesideAn Old School Building at Foster's SchoolAnne's Hairdressing Parlour and J ChubbAntelope Hotel Including Southern Part of Rear WingsArchway at Entrance to Sherborne School Playing FieldsBarn at Lower Clatcombe FarmBarn to Newell House SchoolBarry HouseBarton Farmhouse, Dairy Cottage and OutbuildingsBeech Cottage and Garden GateBeech Cottage. Rose Cottage. White Cottage.Bell Buildings at Sherborne SchoolBelmont. Oversey. Seyco House (Including Rear Wing to West).BethanyBoundary Walls to Harper House Along Hound StreetBow HouseBrecon HouseBrewery CottageBritannia InnBrookfieldBrooklyn HouseBuilding Adjoining St John's to EastBute HouseCROWN COTTAGE, TRINITY LODGE NO 3, NOS 6 to 11 GREENHILL AND BODHAM HOUSE NO 19 GREENHILL.Cairn CottageCamelotCastle FarmhouseCastleton House Including GatesCastleton MillChurchyard Walls, Piers and Gates of Church of St Mary MagdaleneCliff HouseCobblersCongregational ChapelConservative Club (The Parade)Corby House and Hill View LodgeCorner HouseCorner House (On Corner Between Acreman Street and Horsecastles)Cornhill House. Including Front Garden Railings and Wing to North-East Down Cornhill.Cottage to the South of Religious Society of Friends' Meeting HouseCottages Known As No 4 and No 2CrantockCromwell House. Belmont. Wistaria House and Dwarf Walls and RailingsCrosswaysCumberland HouseCustos Lodge at Sherborne SchoolCutlersCyclo the Cottage Lyn CottageDevan HayeDevonia House. Harley House.Digby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby EstateDigby Estate Fermoy Including Dwarf Walls and RailingsDigby Estate No 10, CastletonDigby Estate No 169 with Premises Occupied by P J Stainer to Right Hand.Digby Estate No 86 and Digby Estate No 87 (Sunny Cottage)Digby Estate No 88, Keld and HomesteadDigby Estate No 9, CastletonDigby Estate Numbers 121 and 122Digby Estate, The CottageDigby House Including Dwarf Wall, Piers, Railings and Lampstandards Along Digby RoadDigby Mausoleum in Sherborne CemeteryDigby MemorialDigby Memorial Church HallDobbinsDolphin CottageDolphin HouseDonoreDownsideDuck House Including Garden Wall and RailingsDwarf Wall and Railings and Gates to Brecon HouseDwarf Wall and Railings to Shaul HouseDwarf Wall and Railings to WoodviewDwarf Wall, Gates, Overthrow and Railings to the Congregational ChapelDwarf Wall, Railings and Gate to Gainsborough HouseDwarf Walls and Railings to Gayton and VernaEastbury CottagesEastbury Hotel including area railingsEastbury House, carriage entrance to east and garden wall to west.EastfieldsElizabeth House and BracondaleEndcote Merry Cottage Lorna General Post Office MeerutEstcourtFairfieldsFernsideFormer Stable Block Behind Greenhill CourtFront garden wall to Sherborne HouseG F S Room. All Hallows. Askwith House.Gable HouseGainsborough HouseGarden Wall and Gate Piers to West of LynwoodGarden Wall and Piers to Lattice HouseGarden Wall to Barton Farmhouse Along Yeovil RoadGarden Wall to Digby Estate No 122Garden Wall to RiversideGarden wall adjoining The Cedars on the west sideGarden walls to rear of Sherborne HouseGate Piers and Railings to Winton and the FirsGate Piers to the Old BidewellGate, Lamp and Overthrow Between Nos 54 and 56 at Entrance to Methodist Church from Cheap StreetGates and Gate Piers at North East End of Abbey CloseGayton. Verna.Georgian House Including RailingsGlenart and Western Range of Hunt's DairiesGlenville and Long Street Post OfficeGospel Hall Including Dwarf Walls and RailingsGreen CottageGreyhound Public HouseGreystones including dwarf wall, railings and gateHarper HouseHedingham Stile CloseHelvetia. Crofters. the Match Box. Pendennis. No 4. Penlee. Monks Newell. Newell Cottage. Seven Cottages at West EndHolland CottagesK6 Telephone Kiosk Outside C.B. Brett and Son, Half Moon StreetK6 Telephone Kiosk Outside Post Office, Cheap StreetK6 Telephone Kiosk on Reservation at Junction with Newland GardenKeepers Cottage, The Cobbles and Melmoth HouseKenelm and Aldhelmsted East Boarding Houses, Sherborne Girls SchoolKingston CottageKingston HouseKitt Hill House Including Front Garden Walls and Railings and Wall to Rear Garden Along Kitt HillLattice House Including Area RailingsLindell and LinwoodLinden. the Cottage.Little KnappLloyd's Bank LtdLodbourne HallLower NewlandLynwoodMacready House
Conservation areas
1 conservation area covers 33% of Sherborne
Areas the council protects as a whole: demolition and changes to how buildings look need consent, and trees are protected.
Sherborne104 ha
104 hain conservation areas, of 318 ha inside the built-up area.
372 of the 377 listed buildings stand in one.
Historic England’s conservation areas layer, supplied by councils (incomplete in places, so a page fact, never graded). Hectares are the part of each area inside the built-up area.
How the list grew
More than half of Sherborne’s listed buildings were added in one year, 1973
The year each building now on the list was first listed.
1973 · 2281950 · 801971 · 54
19501960197019801990200020102020
The first 80 entries were listed in 1950, 11 of the 12 Grade I buildings among them. 228 came in 1973, in the national resurvey of the 1970s and 80s. Only 1 has been added in the last 15 years.
Monuments & landscapes
Monuments, parks and gardens
Designations that overlap the town by a tenth of their area or half a hectare.
2 scheduled monuments
Nationally important archaeological sites and monuments, protected by law; work on them needs consent from the Secretary of State, advised by Historic England.
History Grade
Sherborne grades A+ for history
Protected heritage and the age of the town’s homes, against all UK towns.
Protected heritage, for its size and in all (421 points, 406 per 10,000 residents)More than 97% of UK towns
Homes built before 1919 (26%)More than 76% of UK towns
Two measures, each ranked against every UK town of 1,000 or more, with protected heritage counting twice as much as the age of homes. Protected heritage counts each listed building by its grade (Grade I three points, II* two, II one), each scheduled monument and battlefield two, and each registered park or garden by its grade; it is ranked both per 10,000 residents and as a total, so a village with one fine church doesn’t outrank a historic city. The second measure is the share of homes built before 1919, from the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax records. History is a character grade: it describes the town and isn’t part of the overall grade.
Homes by age
26% of Sherborne’s homes were built before 1919
Every home by when it was built, from council tax records, against England & Wales (the dark tick).
19%
Before 1900
6.7%
1900–18
3.9%
1919–29
4.1%
1930s
5.7%
1945–54
4.1%
1955–64
14%
1965–72
5.9%
1973–82
9.4%
1983–92
7.1%
1993–99
5.3%
2000–08
2.7%
2009–15
12%
2016–25
SherborneEngland & Wales
19% of homes are Victorian or older, against 16% across England and Wales. The busiest period since was 1965–72, which added 14% of today’s homes.
Valuation Office Agency, council tax stock of properties by build period, 31 March 2025, for the neighbourhoods (LSOAs) that make up the town, split by where their residents live. Homes with no recorded build period (170 here) are left out; 1939–44 is not a period in the data.
Born here
13 notable people born in Sherborne before 1900
Their lives on one timeline, earliest first.
Stephen Harding
James Bradley
Thomas Ridout
John Hyatt
William Dawe
William Senior
Nathaniel Highmore
Anthony Henley
Robert Henley
John Hall-Dalwood
Roger Gaskell Hetherington
Charles Tate Regan
Alec Tod
1050120013501500165018001950
James Bradley1693–1762 · English astronomer; Astronomer Royal
Charles Tate Regan1878–1943 · British zoologist (1878–1943)
Stephen Harding1059–1134 · English-born monk and abbot
William Senior1837–1920 · Anglo-Australian journalist and writer 1838-1920
John Hyatt1767–1826 · English minister and missionary
AH
Anthony Henley1846–1916 · English cricketer (1846-1916)
RH
Robert Henley1851–1889 · English cricketer (1851-1889)
WD
William Dawe1825–1912 · New Zealand cricketer
Everyone born in Sherborne → Birthplaces from Wikidata; portraits from Wikimedia Commons.
Towns its size
Sherborne has the 4th most Grade I buildings of 666 towns its size
Places of 6,000–17,000 people outside London, by Grade I listed buildings.
Sherborne12
#8 of 666for listed buildings per resident (364 per 10,000). Brecon, Malmesbury and Ludlow lead.
Only Armagh, Wells and Berwick-upon-Tweed have more. The typical town its size has 0.
Neighbours
Listed buildings in the places around Sherborne
| Town | People | Listed | Grade I | History |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sherborne | 10,359 | 377 | 12 | A+ |
| Milborne Port | 3,207 | 69 | 1 | A |
| Barwick and Stoford | 1,095 | 15 | 0 | B |
| Yeovil | 50,170 | 131 | 3 | B− |
| Templecombe | 1,657 | 15 | 0 | B+ |
| Henstridge | 1,579 | 16 | 0 | B+ |
| Stalbridge | 2,367 | 51 | 0 | A |
| Ilchester | 2,062 | 48 | 0 | B+ |
In brief
Sherborne in brief
For its size, Sherborne has more listed heritage than 97% of UK towns. In all there are 377 listed buildings, 12 of them Grade I, including Sherborne Abbey. Of its homes, 26% were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town. Its Grade I buildings cluster together: 12 of them stand within 400 m of Abbey Grange.
Only 3 of the 666 towns nearest its size have more Grade I buildings. On Cheap Street alone there are 28 listed buildings. A conservation area protects part of it. Otherwise the figures are ordinary: it also has 2 scheduled monuments.
Questions about Sherborne’s history
How many listed buildings are there in Sherborne?
Historic England lists 377 buildings inside Sherborne’s built-up area: 12 Grade I, 16 Grade II* and 349 Grade II.
What are the Grade I listed buildings in Sherborne?
12, including Abbey Church of St Mary, Abbey Grange, Chapel at Sherborne School, Former Hospital of Saints John the Baptist and John the Evangelist, Library at Sherborne School and Part of Sherborne School on Exterior of North Transept of Abbey Church.
Are there scheduled monuments in Sherborne?
Yes, 2 scheduled monuments, including Sherborne Abbey, remains of and The Conduit Cross.
How many conservation areas are there in Sherborne?
1, covering about 104 hectares of the town. The largest is Sherborne.
When were Sherborne’s buildings listed?
The first in 1950; the most, 228, in 1973.
Who was born in Sherborne?
Among people born before 1900: James Bradley (1693), Charles Tate Regan (1878), Stephen Harding (1059), William Senior (1837) and John Hyatt (1767).
How old are the homes in Sherborne?
26% of homes were built before 1919 and 34% before 1940, from the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax records (March 2025).
© Historic England 2026. Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. The National Heritage List for England is the official, up-to-date register of all nationally protected historic buildings and sites in England; check an entry on Historic England’s website before relying on it.
Sources: Historic England, National Heritage List for England (listed buildings, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, battlefields, World Heritage Sites), October 2026, inside the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary · Valuation Office Agency, Council Tax: stock of properties by build period (31 March 2025) · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only · Historic England conservation areas (supplied by local planning authorities; October 2026). All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.