Portland cement was first patented by a Leeds bricklayer, Joseph Aspdin on 21 October 1824. It is so named because of its resemblance to Portland stone. Portland cement is now the most common type of cement in general use around the world.
Royal Mail acknowledged the importance of Portland Cement in a series of stamps entitled “Industrial Revolutions” launched in August 2021, to celebrate “an era of innovation, ingenuity and ambition”.
Within the collection of documents held by the Dorset History Centre, an invoice for the purchase of a barrel of Portland cement can be found dated 8 December 1859. It is contained within the Bond Family of Creech Grange, Steeple collection. The purchase price was 11/6. The invoice also references the purchase of a cask of Roman cement. Whilst this had been in use from about 150BC, Portland cement had largely replaced it by the end of the 19th Century.
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In 1922, Marie Stopes purchased the Higher Lighthouse at Portland Bill. This was to be her retreat for 35 years and such was her love of the island, she purchased two cottages in Wakeham and gave them to the people of Portland for a museum, which opened in 1930. Stopes was recognised for her work as a pioneer of family planning on a 50p stamp, issued in October 2008. This was one of six stamps that paid tribute to six women who “defied discrimination, changing the course of history”
Within the Dorset Archive at can be found a leaflet which “starts at Portland Museum and enables the visitor to discover the story of Stopes “life and work as a paleo-botanist and then explore the area around Portland Bill that was her retreat from the pressures of her life’s work and where she entertained many of the amous names of the time (she was a long time friend of Thomas Hardy) and planned the creation of a museum for the people of Portland”
The trail is part of a 2018 collaborative project “Escaping the Storm” for which As One Theatre Company researched and produced a touring play about Marie Stopes time on Portland, working with students of the Atlantic Academy and funded with the support of the National Lottery (D-3015/2/1).
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On 15 July 1877, over 100 lives were lost seven miles off Portland, when the Avalanche, an iron vessel with a crew of 40 and 66 passengers on board, collided with the Forest. Both ships were fully rigged and sailing in stormy seas when the Forest collided with the Avalanche mid-ships. All lives on the Avalanche were lost except for three who managed to scramble aboard the Forest. An album of newspaper cuttings, transcripts, photographs, booklets and research notes relating to the catastrophic collision can be found at D-1767/1.
Due to its exposed location, the waters around Portland can be treacherous, with the “Portland Race” being one of the most dangerous areas of broken water in the English Channel. Most Weymouth lifeboat calls are to rescue yachts whose skippers were unaware of the race’s dangers and having been unexpectedly swept into the tumult, are unable to escape. Such a rescue is shown on one of six Royal Mail stamps issued in March 2008.
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This was a guest blog written for Dorset History Centre by volunteer David Palmer. If you would like to write a guest blog for us, please get in touch with us at archives@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk and one of the team will get in touch with you!