Fortuneswell

Fortuneswell, or Fortunes Well, is a village in Underhill, which lies on steeply sloping land on the northern edge of the island. Adjoining Fortuneswell is Chiswell to the north-west, with Castletown to the north. Fortuneswell occupies the steepest land of Underhill, whereas Chiswell and Castletown occupy flat land close to sea level, next to Chesil Beach and Portland Harbour respectively. Fortuneswell is Underhill's main hub of activity and has a main shopping street with several shops and businesses.

As with most of Portland's villages and settlements, Fortuneswell, including Maidenwell and Mallams, is a conservation area for its special architectural and historic interest. Underhill, incorporating Chiswell, Maidenwell, Fortuneswell and Castletown, was designated in 1976, with boundary extensions in 1997, 2000, 2014 and 2017.

History
Fortuneswell's origins as a settlement likely dates back to the Roman or early medieval period. With the area's natural springs providing a water supply, various wells were most likely created during the time of Roman Britain. The main well was located along the main street and near the top of High Street. The hamlet was recorded as "Fortunes Well" in 1608 and it is suggested that this name originated from the belief in the "occult star-telling power" of the well's water, where one's luck could be seen. The well was later sealed up in 1914, fifteen years after a piped water supply arrived to the island.

Like Chiswell, Fortuneswell was traditionally the home of quarrymen and fishermen. It remained a small hamlet for centuries, with only 27 of the island's 280 houses being located there in 1782. Fortuneswell had a lot of open space surrounding it, with two separate settlements, Maidenwell and Mallams, located nearby. St John's Church was later built at Fortuneswell in 1838-40 to serve the Underhill community, primarily as St George's at Reforne was considered inconvenient for the residents to reach and too small for the island's growing population.

Fortuneswell's character was significantly altered from the mid-19th century onwards with the transformation of Portland Roads into a harbour of refuge, which included the construction of two breakwaters arms and various fortifications. The new harbour began to be used extensively by the Royal Navy, resulting in them establishing a station there. As the island's population continued to grow during this time, Fortuneswell became increasingly urbanised, with Underhill becoming a separate parish from Tophill in 1865. As Fortuneswell overtook Chiswell as Underhill's largest settlement, many new houses were erected, including within the areas of Mallams, King Street and Artist Row.

Meanwhile, the military presence, and general influx of new residents and visitors, attracted many enterprises to establish themselves along Fortuneswell's main street. The 1896 Kelly's Directory listed seventy-three businesses within the village, while the Portland Directory of 1865 including many shopkeepers, public houses, a coal merchant, grocers, bakers, fruiterer, butcher, confectioner, warehouses, a shoemaker, a draper, a china and glass dealer, a chemist and photographic artist. Eliot's Bank was established at 75 Fortuneswell, while the original St John's and Brackenbury (Wesleyan) Schools were opened during the 1840s (St John's was later rebuilt and re-opened in 1857).

By the turn of the 20th century, housing requirements led to further expansion of the village and new terraces were erected at various locations such as Ventnor Lane at the north-east, and Hambro Road, St Martin's Road and St Paul's Road to the south. Thomas Hardy, in his 1897 novel The Well-Beloved, described the scene of Underhill and the village: "The towering rock, the houses above houses, one man's doorstep rising behind his neighbour's chimney, the gardens hung up by one edge to the sky, the vegetables growing on apparently almost vertical planes."

In 1938, Portland Urban District Council had the site of Tillycombe Farm transformed into a large housing estate of 62 residences. During World War II, the presence of the naval base at Portland saw the island a target of German air raids, with 48 attacks taking place over the course of the war. Fortuneswell was the victim of some damage aimed at the base, with one particular raid resulting in the destruction of St John's School in 1940.

Following the war, a large housing estate across Verne Common was established. While plans for such an estate stemmed back to before the war (as early as 1921), construction finally began in 1949, with the first stage being completed in 1952. The second stage was completed in early 1954, with over 240 houses and flats built. The late 1950s, mid-1960s and 1970s all saw further expansion of the estate, while new housing also appeared within the southern region of the village, along Killicks Hill, and including Paul's Mead and Weare Close. Meanwhile, Fortuneswell remained a thriving commercial centre for Underhill until the closure of HM Naval Base Portland in 1995, resulting in a gradual economic decline. However, a number of businesses continue to operate from the village to date, including a launderette, estate agents, hardware store, fish and chip takeaway, newsagents, a Co-operative store and a Boots pharmacy.

Features
Over the last few decades, many shops in Fortuneswell have changed hands frequently or ceased trading. One notable example was Way's Shop, which dated back to the 18th century and continued trading until early 1973. Fortuneswell was considered the main business centre on Portland until the 1970s onwards, when many well-established businesses ceased trading.

The northern region of the village features Victoria Gardens, opened in 1904 to mark the 1897 Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria, while the southern region features Old Hill, a very steep footpath leading from Underhill to Tophill. It was the traditional route for those travelling to and from Tophill, with the adjacent New Road later being constructed in the early 19th century.

The main road running through Fortuneswell has operated as a one-way street since 1963. By the mid-20th century, congestion through Fortuneswell had become an increasing problem. Traffic lights were introduced in 1955, but these failed to alleviate the congestion, particularly as vehicles stopping to unload at the shops would cause queues themselves.

Grade listed features
Fortuneswell has a wide array of architecture and buildings, a number of which are listed. There are some particularly older dwellings nestled beside Victorian and later built houses:

Houses along and around Fortuneswell's main street

Police station with court room - Grade II listed since May 1993. Overlooking Victoria Gardens, the former police station and its court room is dated 1904 and 1906. A notable interior feature is a block of six cells, with two retaining their original pattern doors. The police station closed in 2002.
Front boundary wall and steps to police station - Grade II listed since May 1993. Dated 1906.
1 and 2 Castle Road, with boundary wall and steps - Grade II listed since May 1993. Dating from the early 20th century, the two houses were formerly police dwellings, attached to the station.
3 Castle Road, with boundary wall - Grade II listed since May 1993. Again dating from the early 20th century as a former police dwelling, attached to the station.
165 Fortuneswell - Grade II listed since May 1993. A house dating from the early 19th century, built at the end of a row set at a right angle to the main road.
The New Star Inn - Grade II listed since May 1993. A public house dating from the mid-19th century, with an early 20th century front. Historic England described the front as being a "forceful and unaltered frontage characteristic of its era".
Bow Cottage, along with its boundary wall, at Artist Row - Grade II listed since May 1993. Dates from the early to mid-19th century.
81 Fortuneswell - Grade II listed since May 1993. An office building dating from the late 19th century, which shares some design details with the adjoining former Post Office building.
Post Office at 79 Fortuneswell - Grade II listed since May 1993. Dated 1894, the former Post Office is described as having a "very typical brash commercial design which has remained unaltered". It was built by the local builder Mr. John Patten. The Post Office vacated the ground floor in 2012, which has been occupied by the hair and beauty studio Salon 88 since 2017.
59 and 61 Fortuneswell - Grade II listed since May 1993. Two houses including shops, located at the junction with High Street. Both date from the 18th century, but have undergone modifications in the 19th and 20th centuries. Historic England recorded that the houses are "one of the earliest buildings in the area" and "represent an important corner site".
116 and 118 Fortuneswell, including front garden walls and gatepiers - Grade II listed since May 1993. A pair of attached houses, dating from the early 19th century and depicted on the 1841 Tithe Map.
St. John's Church - Grade II listed since January 1951. Built in 1839-40 by Mr John Hancock of Weymouth to serve Underhill as a daughter church to St George's. In 1865, Underhill became its own parish, with St. John's becoming the parish church.
Churchyard walls, gate piers, railings, and steps of St. John's Church - Grade II listed since September 1978. Dating between 1839-40.
Two monuments, north east from west tower of St John's Church - Grade II listed since September 1978. Two headstones, of mid-19th century origin, bearing inscriptions now largely indecipherable. One has the name John Green and the other Joseph.
Royal Portland Arms - Grade II listed since September 1978 - a public house with 18th century origins.
6 and 8 Fortuneswell - Grade II listed since May 1995. Both dwellings date between 1820 and 1830.
Queen Anne House, with boundary wall and gate piers - Grade II* listed since May 1993. Located at the top of Fortuneswell, the house was built in the early 18th century by the Gilbert family.
The Britannia Inn - Grade II listed since May 1993. Dating from the mid-to-late 19th century, the pub was named after a Royal Navy ship which frequently visited Portland Harbour.
Portland Steam Laundry - a large red brick building, built in 1899-1900 at Brymer Avenue (tenders for its construction were sought in April 1899). The laundry was active until the mid-20th century and was then acquired by Ellis Engineering (later known as Portland Engineering). The firm continued to use the building as their own premises until 1991. It was then used by tenants as a workshop or offices, including Thorn Security and Blacknor Technologies Ltd. The building briefly became an arts centre in 2009 but closed in 2011 and has remained vacant since. It became Grade II listed in March 2019.
Boundary stone at Hambro Road - Grade II listed in May 1993. A War Department/Admiralty boundary stone dating from the mid-19th century. It is one of many markers of its kind to be found on Portland, but is notable for being "retained in the urban context". The stone is now partially buried in the pavement.
Boundary stones at the junction of New Road and Old Hill - Grade II listed in May 1993. Two War Department/Admiralty boundary stones, again dating from the mid-19th century.
The Old Rectory (1, 1A and 2 Old Hill), and boundary walls - Grade II listed since May 1993. A house dating from the mid-18th century, built as the rectory to St George's Church. It was extended around 1825 and later converted into a privately-run hotel. By the end of the 20th century, it had been converted into three dwellings. Historic England noted that the rectory has a "dramatic site on the scarp slope above Fortuneswell".

High Street
High Street contains various notable houses, and was once a separate hamlet known as Maidenwell. This is past the upper end of Chiswell, where the road turns into Fortuneswell and becomes High Street.

10 High Street and its attached outbuilding - Grade II listed since May 1993. Of late 18th century origin, the house has undergone later alteration. The outbuilding is described by Historic England as being "characteristic of the small-scale development in Fortuneswell in the 18th century".
58 High Street - Grade II listed since September 1978. Built in the 18th century along with the adjoining No. 60, and later underwent alternations in the late 20th century.
60 High Street and its attached outbuilding - Grade II listed since September 1978. Dating from the mid-to-late 18th century, the house was later refenestrated during the mid-19th century.
62 (Tenastelion) and 64 High Street - Grade II listed since September 1978. A pair of mid-18th century houses.
107 and 109 High Street - Grade II listed since May 1993. Two dwellings of early 19th century origin, and noted as having an "unusual design" with larger than usual windows. In the 20th century, the houses survived surrounding demolitions and other changes to nearby buildings.
135 High Street and its front boundary wall - Grade II listed since September 1953. The house dates from the late 17th-early 18th century and is recorded by Historic England as being the end property to the "best remaining group in Underhill".
137 and 139 High Street, with front boundary wall - Grade II listed since September 1953. A pair of houses, dating from around the mid-18th century and later refenestrated in the early 19th century. Historic England described the two properties as "one of the best group of houses remaining in Underhill".
141 High Street and its boundary walls, piers and gate - Grade II listed since September 1953. Dating from the late 17th-early 18th century, the house was later refenestrated in the early 19th century. Also forming part of the "best remaining row in Underhill", the house is notable for its "exceptionally complete frontage still retaining its stone slate roof".
147 High Street - Grade II listed since September 1953. Dating from the early-to-mid-19th century, the house is recorded by Historic England as forming part of the "best remaining row of houses in Underhill, forming an effective visual stop at its lower end".
159 and 161 High Street - Grade II listed since July 1975. Dating from the early-to-mid 19th century, the two houses, along with No. 163, underwent sympathetic renovation in June 1991, which including replacement of the windows.
163 High Street - Grade II listed since July 1975. A house dating from the mid-19th century.
165 High Street - Grade II listed since July 1975. Dating from the early 19th century, some parts of the house are believed to be of earlier origin. The house adjoins No. 120 Chiswell. Historic England recorded that the house's return frontage "faces down into Chiswell, holding an important position in the townscape".
The Captain's House and attached wall to south east - Grade II listed since September 1978. Located at High Street and near the bottom of Mallams, the house has mid-to-late-17th century origins. It became a ruin over the course of the late 19th century and remained as such until it was privately renovated in the late 1990s.
Maidenwell - Grade II listed since May 1993. The remains of a boundary wall and well head/cistern, located at the bottom of High Street. The remains are believed to be of 18th century origin. The well would have once played a vital role in supplying water to this area of Portland, but was filled in during 1896, three years before a piped supply arrived to the island. Historic England noted that "none of the formal well heads have survived, so that this modest remnant has historical interest".

Mallams
The steep street Mallams was once a separate hamlet from Fortuneswell and features various notable buildings, with the road having extensive terraces from the 18th and 19th centuries.

17 Mallams - Grade II listed since May 1993. Dates from the early 19th century.
19 Mallams - Grade II listed since May 1993. Dates from the early 19th century. The house is believed to have been built at the same time as No. 17 Mallams. It is one of few properties on this side of Mallams not to have been greatly modified during the 20th century.
53 Mallams - Grade II listed since May 1993. Dates from the early 19th century.
Fair Winds (63 Mallams) - Grade II listed since September 1978. A detached house dating from the early 19th century. Although the original door and sash windows have since been replaced, Historic England records the house as being "rather more grand than most houses in the area, and is unusual in having a brick frontage". The Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England noted that the house represented "the only use of facing brick dating from before circa 1850 on the Island".
42 Mallams - Grade II listed since May 1993. Dates from the mid-to-late 18th century and is described by Historic England as having "greater architectural pretension than most in the row".
58 Mallams - Grade II listed since May 1993. Dating from the late 18th-early 19th century, the house is believed to have a refenestration of an earlier front, while the ground-floor window was once wider.
60 Mallams - Grade II listed since September 1978. Dates from the early 19th century.
62 and 64 Mallams - Grade II listed since May 1993. Both date from the late 18th century and have mid-19th century fenestration.
K6 Telephone Kiosk - Grade II listed since September 1978. The K6 kiosk, located opposite No. 63 Mallams, was designed in 1935 by the English architect Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, best known for designing the iconic red telephone box.

Other notable buildings

Portland Town Council Offices - built in 1933-34 by Messrs Jesty and Baker as offices of the Portland Urban District Council, and later Portland Town Council from 1974 until 2016.
Underhill Methodist Church - built as a Wesleyan Methodist Church in 1898-99, replacing an earlier chapel known as Brackenbury's Chapel, which had been opened in 1793. The church closed in 2022.
Brackenbury House - built in 1903 on the site of Brackenbury's Chapel (demolished that year) as a manse for the minister of the new Underhill Methodist Church.
Brackenbury Infant School - opened in May 1845 as a Wesleyan Day School and extended in the 1905 by Messrs Jesty and Baker. Later known as Brackenbury Infant School, it continued to operate until the opening of the new Brackenbury School at Clovens Road in 1991. From 2011 to 2019, part of the former school was used as a community centre known as the Brackenbury Centre.
North Portland Working Men's Club - originally known as the Gladstone Hall, the building was established at East Street as premises for the North Portland Liberal Club and opened on 4 December 1901 by Mr. T. T. L. Searisbrick. It was originally made up of three rooms: a billiard room, reading room and committee room/library. Major extension and alteration work was carried out in c. 1969 to the designs of Ernest Wamsley Lewis. Planning permission was approved in 2015 to demolish the club and built six three-bedroom houses on the site.
Portland Connect Centre - originally the Portland Underhill Health Clinic, built by Dorset County Council and opened on 2 July 1958 by the chairman of South Dorset Area's Sub-Committee. It later became the Fairfield Day Centre, an adult day care centre, and now known as Portland Connect.
Portland Social Club - established in 1885 as the North Portland Conservative Club and based within the former premises of the Portland British School at the top of High Street. The school had opened in 1827 and closed in the mid-19th century. The premises was also known as the Yerburgh Hall as early as the 1920s. The club, later known as the Royal British Legion Club, saw extension work around the late 1960s, following the demolition of the "Roundhouse" building at the top of High Street.
Underhill Community Junior School - built in 1913 by Messrs Jesty and Baker and saw expansion throughout the second half of the 20th century. It closed in 2014 and was replaced by the new Isle of Portland Aldridge Community Academy campus at Osprey Quay. Redevelopment work commenced in 2018, with the majority of the original school building to be retained.
Brackenbury Infant School and Community Nursery - a modern school built in 1990-91 at Clovens Road and opened in 1991. It closed in 2014 and was also replaced by the new campus at Osprey Quay. A community nursery was opened in the school grounds in 1996.
Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses - built in 1865-66 and opened in 1866 as a Bible Christian Chapel. It closed as a Methodist chapel in 1971 and has been used as a Kingdom Hall since 1974.
Portland Soldiers & Sailors Home - opened in c. 1883 at Queens Road by a local committee and later taken over by the Wesleyan Methodist Connexional Army and Navy Committee, who reopened it as the Wesleyan Sailors' and Soldiers' Home in 1903. It later became the Kingsway Hotel and was destroyed during an air raid in April 1941, killing approximately thirty soldiers.
Osborne Hall - constructed in 1889 and originally used as a victuallers, primarily serving the Royal Navy. In the early 20th century, it began to hold Sunday services for the Brethren. After various uses by the community over the decades, the hall was converted into a private residence in the 1980s.
Royal Manor Theatre - a former Primitive Methodist Chapel built in 1869. It ceased service in 1971 and was then converted to create a theatre. It was opened by the Royal Manor Theatre Company in 1978 and continues to operate to date.
The Regal Cinema - a cinema opened in 1932 and later transformed into the Regal Bingo and Social Club in the late 1960s. It then became the Rumours nightclub in the early 1990s, but was a victim of suspected arson in 1992 and subsequently demolished.
75 Fortuneswell - a purpose-built building for Eliot's Bank, established in the mid-19th century at the top of Spring Gardens. It was later occupied by Lloyds, and in 1999, planning permission was obtained to convert the building into six flats.
Stanhope House (71-73 Fortuneswell) - a purpose-built drapery for Mr. Henry Russell, erected by John Patten in 1865-66 and designed by the architect Mr. Robert Bennett of Weymouth. It replaced earlier premises occupied by Russell, who held a "great sale" of his "large and well-assorted stock" during February 1866, prior to relocating to the new building. A series of proprietors took over the premises during the course of the early 20th century, including G. P. Hayes in the 1900s. Goulds later purchased the premises, then occupied by the long-established E. Morris and Son, in 1974, but closed it in 1981 in favour of focusing on their three premises in Dorchester. The No 73 section of the building is now made up of flats, while No 71 is vacant. In 2014, the shop front of No 71 was painted by the Portland Community Partnership to create a mural of a shop named "The Fakery". The project received a letter of appreciation by the Weymouth Civic Society.
St John's School - established as a national school by St John's Church in the 1840s, it was later rebuilt and opened under the same name on 6 April 1857. Able to accommodate 500 children, the school later became Underhill's junior school in the 1930s, but was permanently closed after suffering severe damage during a German air raid in September 1940. The ruins were later sold by auction in 1951 and the site went on to be developed into St John's Close.

Public houses (past and present)

The Britannia Inn (17 Fortuneswell) - active since the mid-19th century, located within the southern region of the village. Retains decorations and signs on the facade to Eldridge Pope Co Ltd.
The New Star Inn (115 Fortuneswell) - active since the mid-19th century and originally known as the Prince of Wales.
The Royal Hotel - hotel/inn, located opposite the Royal Manor Theatre within the northern region of the village. It was built by local builder Mr John Patten for Captain Scriven, who paid a total of £3,000 for its construction and furnishing. The hotel opened on 5 November 1863 and closed in the mid-20th century when it was converted into residential flats.
Royal Oak Inn - active since the late 19th century and closed in the early 20th century, located at the bottom of Mallams.
Royal Portland Arms (40 Fortuneswell) - active since the 18th century, located within the southern region of the village. It was regularly visited by King George III during his excursions to the area and was described as "one of the best houses of entertainment in the island" in 1833.
Royal Standard (27 Queens Road) - active in the 19th century and closed in 1985. Planning permission was approved that year to transform the building into one house and three flats. Retains the name "Royal Standard" and a relocated stone tablet with "John Groves & Sons Ltd".
The Star (4 Albert Terrace) - active until the mid-20th century and converted into a private residence. The Prince of Wales was then renamed the New Star Inn.
The Sun Inn - active in the 19th century, but later closed and subsequently demolished following bomb damage during World War II. Located at the top of High Street, close to the British Legion Club. The site of the pub is now part of a car park.
Travellers Rest - active since the mid-19th century and into the late 20th century. Located at New Road overlooking Fortuneswell and now a private residence.

References
The following is an A-Z list of references for this page.

1) Ancestry.com - Genealogy - Portland Churches, Buildings and Views - St. John's the Baptist Church - Paul Benyon - website page
2) Ancestry.com - Genealogy - Portland Year Book 1905 - Churches & Chapels etc. - Paul Benyon - website page
3) Dorset for You - Appraisal of the Conservation Areas of Portland - PDF document
4) Dorset Life - The Dorset Magazine - Danger UXB – Portland’s World War 2 Unexploded Bomb - Roger Mutch - website page
5) Exploring Portland - Fortuneswell North - Geoff Kirby - website page
6) Exploring Portland - Fortuneswell South - Geoff Kirby - website page
7) Family Business United - Goulds (Dorchester) Ltd - website page
8) Historic England - The National Heritage List for England - various entries for Portland - website page
9) Isle of Portland Official Guide - Portland Urban District Council - Ed. J. Burrow & Co. Ltd, Chelternham and London - circa 1955 - book
10) Online Parish Clerks - Portland Files: Portland Directory 1865 - website page
11) Ordnance Survey - various maps from the 19th and 20th centuries
12) Pastscape - various entries on database - website page
13) Portland Encyclopaedia - Rodney Legg - Dorset Publishing Company - 1999 - ISBN: 978-0948699566 - page 54 - book
14) Portland Picture Archive - World War 2 - Geoff Kirby - website page
15) Portland Year Book 1905 - Chronology of the Island of Portland 700 - 1905 AD - Paul Benyon - website page
16) Portland Year Book 1905 - Portland's Population - Paul Benyon - website page
17) Portland Year Book 1905 - The Island's Water Supply - Paul Benyon - website page
18) Portland: An Illustrated History - Stuart Morris - Dovecote Press - 1985 - ISBN: 978-0946159345 - pages 88, 136 - book
19) The British Newspaper Archive - various contemporary newspaper articles - website page

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