Peter Wellman, the last known resident of Tyneham—the World War II ghost village in Dorset—has passed away at the age of 100. Born in Tyneham in 1924, Peter made a heartfelt return to his childhood village last year, reflecting on a place frozen in time since its evacuation nearly 80 years ago.
Tyneham was evacuated just before Christmas 1943 when the British Army requisitioned the land to expand its training ranges. Approximately 250 residents, including those in the village and surrounding valley farms, were forced to leave with the promise of returning once the war ended. However, this promise was never fulfilled, and Tyneham remains on Ministry of Defence land to this day.
Although the village is no longer inhabited, its ruins, along with the path to nearby Warbarrow Bay beach, are open to the public for about 160 days annually. The restored schoolhouse and church stand as enduring symbols of the community that once thrived there, but much of the village continues to decay, a silent memorial to its past.
Peter’s daughter, Lynne, shared that her father treasured his visits back to Tyneham and enjoyed sharing stories about his youth there. Though Peter had moved out of the village before the war for work, the forced evacuation deeply impacted him. He spent the latter part of his life in nearby Swanage, where he died peacefully of pneumonia on April 29.
Reflecting on his childhood, Peter recalled simple, hard-working village life: “We had no electricity, no mains gas, and no running water—we had to pump water from near the church. I remember fishing at the beach and catching mackerel. We were happy until we were made to leave.”
Peter’s family had deep roots in Tyneham, with his grandfather serving as the village shepherd. He attended the one-room schoolhouse until its closure in 1933, then took to the bus for school before beginning work on local farms at age 14. He spent decades farming and later worked in the clay industry, attributing the villagers’ longevity to “fresh air, hard work, and a contented mind.”
Though he did not regret leaving Tyneham—recognizing the limited opportunities for young people—Peter was saddened by the permanent loss of his community. “They told us we could come back, but we never were allowed,” he said.
Peter also vividly remembered wartime experiences, including watching a dogfight overhead and waving to a Spitfire pilot who shot down an enemy plane.
Owned by the Bond family, Tyneham resisted modernization and by 1943 life there was much as it had been a century earlier. After sustained campaigning, public access was permitted from 1975, and Tyneham has since grown into a poignant historic site frequented by visitors.
Notably, Peter was the last person to speak with the authentic Tyneham valley Dorset accent, a rich and distinctive burr now lost with his passing. He leaves behind a large family including two children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren.
Elise Neville of James Smith Funeral Directors, organizing Peter’s funeral, described him as “the last living link to Tyneham, and with him goes a piece of our history.” The funeral will take place in Corfe Castle on May 22.