Dorchester Heritage Day

Back in September, Dorchester had a “Heritage Day”. What this means for locals is that some of the “attractions” are open for free visits. One that interested me, and that I haven’t been in before was the Shire Hall. This building was the courthouse for Dorchester, and therefore, as Dorset is pretty rural, most of the county from 1797 to 1955. I would say that it was most famous as the location for the trial of the Tolpuddle Martyrs in 1834. In the photo above you can see a commemorative plaque to them bottom left, below is a closer image.

In the cellars are still the cells where they were held captive. The light was very very low, and even with the 35mm f2 and 400 speed film, still to dark. I got exposures in the cells, but with shutter speeds too low to make a sharp image. In one or two places, the lighting helped me a bit.

The visitor route around the building then takes one up the stairs straight into the dock, the same route one would have taken as a criminal! This area was much brighter, so I could start making images again!

Of course the tour ends in the cafe – but that’s not always a bad thing!

Chatter: Nikon F3, mostly with the 35mm f2, Ilford Delta 400, developed in ID11 1:3.2