Inside ghost village where locals fled leaving a single note behind nearly 80 years ago
A SPOOKY ghost village was left completely deserted nearly 80 years ago with a chilling note pinned on the church.
Tyneham in Dorset became known as a “lost village” after it was evacuated in the Second World War.
All 225 residents were displaced to make way for military training camps for allied soldiers on December 17, 1943.
Only a solitary note remained that was written by a villager for the arriving troops.
It read: “Please treat the church and houses with care; we have given up our homes where many of us lived for generations to help win the war to keep men free.
“We shall return one day and thank you for treating the village kindly.”
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The locals never stepped foot in their home again though – with some settling in newly-built homes around six miles away in Wareham.
A public inquiry was launched in 1948 following protests with villagers who wished to return to Tyneham.
But a compulsory purchase order was issued and the village remained under the ownership of the Ministry of Defence.
Over the years, further campaigns were launched to return Tyneham to its locals but many buildings deemed uninhabitable.
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Dust and cobwebs cover the post box while many of the homes have crumbled into disrepair.
In 1967, the 14th century manor house was ripped down.
Since then, the village is viewed by history buffs as a time capsule after it remained frozen in 1943.
Both the school and church have been made into a museum to teach others about the sacrifice the villagers made.
Fifty years after pinning the sad note on the church door, Helen Taylor, then 92, told how she bore no grudge against the army.
She said: “We went with goodwill, thinking we were doing our share to help with the war.”
