Fingerposts: Dorset Icons

One iconic image that is unique to Dorset are its fingerposts, the old road signs featuring a white or occasionally red metal roundel or finial.
They are a common feature of the Dorset countryside, and are a legacy of the early road system. In 1773 the General Turnpike Act made it mandatory for trustees to put up signs informing the traveller of the distance to the closest town. The four red fingerposts are a source of some debate. Were they the locations of gibbets? The Red Post fingerpost on the A31 was more likely painted red to help prison guards find the local lock-up at the nearby Botany Bay Farm, when accompanying prisoners marching from the Dorchester assizes to the ships at Portsmouth which would convey them to Australia.
Fingerpost Champions
Of the 1300 or so fingerposts thought to exist in the 1950s, just 717 survive today. Many were lost in WWII as they were removed in 1940 to deny guidance to an invading army, and not replaced. Some of the originals have been repaired using non-traditional materials or lettering, and others are in need of attention. The Local Authority no longer has a remit to repair them, and both the Dorset National Landscape (formerly Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) and Dorset CPRE are keen to support local ‘Fingerpost Champions’ to save these signs from extinction and restore them to their former glory. Hundreds of signs have been renewed by Parish and Town Councils, community groups, and individuals.
Roger Bond (Dorset Fingerpost Restorers) co-ordinates the Dorset National Landscape Fingerpost restoration project, working from his home workshop. He repairs and restores characters on new oak ‘fingers’ whilst Coles Castings provide new stock (cast lettering and roundels) ready for fettling and painting.
Roger first became involved in fingerpost restoration projects ten years ago, when he stepped in to assist with the repair of a bracket on the Green Hill Junction fingerpost at Sutton Poyntz. Since then, he been engaged in restoring over two hundred traditional fingerposts around the county. The experience gained is now collated in his new Dorset Fingerpost Restorers website to help others restore their village fingerposts.
If cost is an issue then Dorset National Landscape can offer some materials at discounted prices; or even free of charge when local volunteers do some of the work!
Please visit Dorset Fingerpost Restorers website for more details. Dorset Fingerpost Restorers are a small team, aligned with the Government led Dorset National Landscape Partnership who with over 10 years’ experience can offer a range of services to help restore our historic fingerposts back to their former glory.
Dorset CPRE Grant Scheme
Dorset CPRE offer a small grants scheme for people wanting to restore fingerposts using the correct materials as set out by the Dorset National Landscape. Match funding is not required and there is no application form, but the CPRE ask that requests come from a Parish Council representative (or similar), with a summary of the fingerposts that need repairing, their location(s) and bank accounts details for online payments. Dorset CPRE are covering all of Dorset, and are prepared to award up to £200 per post. As of February 2025, we have spent over £22k on grants for 160 fingerposts with a further 3 that have been approved but not paid for with many in North and West Dorset. These include Melbury Abbas, Winterborne Stickland, East Stour, Yetminster, Mappowder, Broadwindsor and Evershot to name a few. To find out more contact us. It is so important that we preserve these Dorset icons!