Semley

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Semley is a village in Wiltshire, England, part of the Sedgehill and Semley parish. It lies about 3 miles north-east of Shaftesbury, just over the border in Dorset. The hamlet of Sem Hill sits about a quarter of a mile to the west. The River Sem marks part of the parish’s northern boundary.

History and ownership
In 955, King Eadwig granted land at Semley to Wilton Abbey, and the area remained part of that estate for a long time. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries, the land passed through the Crown to noble families. The Wardour family held land here for centuries. In 1986 the parish was merged with Sedgehill to become Sedgehill and Semley.

Buildings and landmarks
North of the church is Church Farmhouse, a 16th‑century building extended in the 17th and 19th centuries. Hook Manor, near Wardour, is a Jacobean house built in 1637; it was given in 1639 to Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore, and remodelled in 1935. The village church, Saint Leonard’s, was rebuilt in the 1860s–75 in a Gothic Revival style, preserving a 12th‑century font and a late‑13th‑century priest’s effigy. Saint Leonard’s is a Grade II listed building.

Religious life
Semley had a Baptist chapel opened in 1823 (closed in 1985) and a Wesleyan Methodist chapel opened in 1877 (closed in 1964). The churchyard walls and railings are also listed.

Education
A National School was built in 1841 and is now Semley Church of England Primary School.

Railway and dairy industry
The Salisbury and Yeovil Railway opened Semley railway station near the A350 in 1859; the line is still in use as part of the West of England Main Line. Semley became a center for dairy farming: a milk business started near the station in 1871 and grew into Semley and Gillingham Dairies, then Salisbury, Semley and Gillingham Dairies. United Dairies bought the business in 1920, built a factory by 1924, and expanded into cheese and egg storage. The factory later became part of Unigate and closed in 1985.

Other notes
Semley’s pasture land was long common land, with some arable land, and most of the common was enclosed between the 16th and 18th centuries. Attempts to enclose the remaining common pasture in the early 19th century were defeated. The village’s pub, the Benett Arms, has existed since at least 1867. The parish population was 477 in 1961.