The entry for Winterborne Whitechurch in the Doomsday Book shows that geld was paid for 2 hides and one virgate of land . There was land for one and a half ploughs, one slave and two borders, six acres of meadow and ten acres of pasture, worth twenty five shillings.The earlier village was further East of the present one - off to the right of Lower Street.
The field at the junction of the A3 54 and Lower Street was said to be cursed; an early church was built on the site , but the work was done on a Sunday and the next day it had 'fallen' down. After several attempts the site was abandoned and the church rebuilt further west on the Milton Abbas Road (its present position).
Today there are 600 residents in the village and although it is not a 'Chocolate box' village, there are several interesting buildings. The church is 12th century with an unusual Jacobean font and cover, the carving being the insignia of the Herring family.The pulpit came originally from Milton Abbey having been discarded because of plaster applied during Cromwellian times to conceal the ornate carving. It was 'discovered' by accident at Whitechurch where ,after restoration, the pulpit now displays its former glory. The stencilling around the arches was done by a the Rector's wife and daughter about 186I.John Wesley was born in the house opposite (formerly the Rectory ,Glebe House) .His father was Rector during the Reformation and was imprisoned for being 'on the wrong side'.
The Parish Room was originally a boys school and after, many years of dereliction, was rescued first as a Church Hall and more recently, as a Montessori School.
The Village Hall was built in 1937 and has recently been extensively refurbished and a Doctor's surgery added all through local effort i.e. no lottery funding.
Opposite the Village Hall is the Dunbury First School (CofE), federated with Winterborne Stickland, Winterborne Kingston and Milton Abbas schools providing a high standard of primary education.
The Milton Arms is a very welcoming pub, serving good home cooked food and playing an important part in the life of the community.
In Lower Street, to the east of the village is an unusual Round House. This was used for raising water in conjunction with the adjacent Sheep Wash by the action of a horse turning a pump shaft.Further down on the right is an Award winning stables conversion. The old stables have been very sympathetically convered into small business units retaining the character of the old building.
Entering Whitechurch on the A354 from Blandford, on the left of the road , stood the former Methodist Chapel. There is an interesting story concerning the Chapel. Briefly, the villagers were, by tradition , Liberal and Methodist. The Squire of the day was against Methodism , so the villagers built the Chapel themselves, stone by stone from the surrounding land. The Squire's baliff attended the first service and reported back to his master the names of those who had attended. The next day, these villagers were sacked ,which meant that they had not only lost their jobs but their homes also..They are said to have prayed very hard about this and eventually, the Squire relented and they continued to worship in their chapel. The chapel was pulled down in 1975,
Further down the A354 on the right is a former Temperance Hotel and Telegraph Office, The single storey building to the left was the village Reading Room and Estate Office. It was then incorporated with the house into the Village Stores. This extension is now occupied by a local developer as an office.
Further along the A3 54 ,beyond the pub, is one of the oldest cottages in Dorset, Forge Cottage, It is reputed to be 13th century and has recently been restored. At the end of the Village is the 'Lady Bailey Park' mainly a residential Park with a holiday park alongside.