The Keep, Dorchester
| The Keep, Dorchester | |
|---|---|
| Dorchester | |
The Keep
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 The Keep, Dorchester
Location within Dorset
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| Coordinates | 50°42′53″N 02°26′37″W / 50.71472°N 2.44361°WCoordinates: 50°42′53″N 02°26′37″W / 50.71472°N 2.44361°W |
| Type | Barracks |
| Site information | |
| Operator |
 British Army
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| Site history | |
| Built | 1877-1881 |
| Built for | War Office |
| In use | 1881-1958 |
| Garrison information | |
| Occupants | Dorset Regiment |
The Keep, Dorchester is the only part remaining of the county barracks of the 39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot and the 75th (Stirlingshire) Regiment of Foot. The barracks were built in about 1880 and housed various regiments as units were amalgamated. It ceased to be used in 1958 and most of the building was demolished when the site was redeveloped in the 1960s. The keep remains and is now used as a regimental museum. It is a Grade II listed building.
The Dorchester Depot Barracks were built between 1877 and 1881. Their creation took place as part of the Cardwell Reforms which encouraged the localisation of British military forces. The barracks became the depot for the 39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot and the 75th (Stirlingshire) Regiment of Foot. Following the Childers Reforms, the 39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot amalgamated with the 54th (West Norfolk) Regiment of Foot to form the Dorset Regiment with its depot in the barracks in 1881.
During the Second World War the barracks were occupied by 701st Ordnance Light Maintenance Company and the 1st Quartermaster Company of the United States Army. In 1958 the Dorset Regiment amalgamated with the Devonshire Regiment to form the Devonshire and Dorset Regiment and Regimental Headquarters were re-located to Wyvern Barracks in Exeter. The site of the barracks was redeveloped in the 1960s and only the keep was retained.
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