April 2015 - Brownsea Island
Members of the Horndean & District U3A met for their regular monthly meeting on Friday 10th April at Merchistoun Hall. Again the weather was glorious. The Members enjoyed a talk by Gordon Furnell ably assisted by his wife Thelma about the history, flora and fauna of Brownsea Island.
Gordon soon showed his passion and love of the island being a National Trust volunteer there for the past ten years. The island was given to the country in lieu of death duties and was in a terrible state of repair when it was taken over by the NT in 1962 and was opened in 1963 by Lady Baden Powell. The John Lewis Partnership leased the castle for 99 years and is used by employees.
The island sits in the middle of Poole Harbour, with dramatic views to the Purbeck Hills. Thriving natural habitats, including woodland, heathland and a lagoon, have created havens for wildlife, such as the famed red squirrel and a huge variety of birds. The island is rich in history too, which is revealed in their Visitor Centre. There are the remains of daffodil farming, pottery works and the village of Maryland to explore, or one can visit the Outdoor Centre to find out more about this birthplace of the Scouting and Guiding movement.
Brownsea is a beautiful 500 acre (one and a half miles by three quarters of a mile) island of heath and woodland and has a rich and colourful history and has had a variety of uses throughout the years. In Victorian times, pottery was produced there and some pieces can still be found on the shoreline today. During the Second World War, the island was used as a decoy to protect the Harbour, and was subsequently taken over by the National Trust in 1962.
Once an isolated island, there is evidence of settlement in the area by the beginning of the fifth century BC, with pottery production, agriculture and trade all well established. In 1964, while clearing a channel just off the island, a dredger recovered two sections of a 33 foot log boat. This boat is now preserved by Poole Museums.
As well as home to the first Scout Movement thanks to Lord Baden-Powell, Brownsea has seen a host of owners from royalty such as King Henry VIII to Mrs Marie Bonham-Christie who lived an extremely reclusive life on the island. Mrs Bonham-Christie was the owner of the island when it was mainly destroyed by fire in 1934. The fire raged for three days but the main buildings on the eastern end of the island were saved by the wind suddenly changing direction.
Gordon continued to entertain us with the exploits of the many owners and visitors over the years and happily answered the many questions mainly about the red squirrels and their habitat. His obvious enthusiasm has wetted our appetites for a visit in the summer!
Diane Stoner, Speaker Co-ordinator.