Branksome: former county boundary stone on Surrey Road

Image: © Chris Downer Taken: 19 May 2014

This pillar marks the former boundary between the counties of Dorset and Hampshire. It remains the borough boundary between Poole (this side) and Bournemouth, as can be seen by the modern street signage and the change in the pavement surface (where each council has maintained the road up to the border). The plaque on this side (see Image for a close-up) and the opposing one refer to the side they face, rather than being a 'welcome' sign for the traveller who reads it: this one therefore refers to the county of Dorset and the parish of Kinson, while the opposite one (Image) refers to the county of Hampshire and the parish of Holdenhurst. The boundary nearby (though not at this point) was altered in about 1904, shifting Kinson into Bournemouth and therefore into Hampshire. However, in 1974 the Hampshire/Dorset boundary was redrawn, bringing Bournemouth into Dorset. This is therefore no longer a county boundary but remains the borough boundary as discussed above.

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