Bridport

Bridport, a municipal borough of Dorsetshire, at the confluence of the Asker and the Brit, 2 miles from the English Channel, and 16½ W. of Dorchester by rail. It stands on an eminence surrounded by hills, and consists chiefly of one spacious street running east and west, and of another stretching towards the sea. It has a town-hall (1785), and a good cruciform parish church (restored in 1865). Till 1867 Bridport returned two members to parliament; and till 1885, one. The chief manufactures are ropes and cordage (a 'Bridport dagger' was proverbial for a halter in Leland's day), besides twine, shoe-thread, fishing-nets, and sailcloth. Bridport was a considerable town before the Norman Conquest, and had a mint for coining silver. Vessels of 250 tons can enter the harbour, which is 1½ mile below the town; and there is some foreign and coasting trade, timber, coal, and flax being imported. Pop. (1861) 7719; (1891) 6611.