Maryland, Brownsea Island and working on the estate of the island's new owners; daffodil fields were a particular feature. In 1927, Mrs Mary Bonham-Christie bought the island and closed down much of its employment; the redundant workers moved to the mainland, and the village was finally abandoned in the same year. During the Second World War II decoy lights were set nearby to divert German bombers from Poole and Bournemouth. The village was largely destroyed, and the ruins subsequently demolished. Maryland, Brownsea Island Maryland is a deserted village on Brownsea Island in Poole Harbour, Dorset, England. It was named for the wife of
Geography of Dorset South Haven Point, is narrow, less than 0.25 miles across. Its shoreline is irregular and heavily indented with numerous small inlets and channels, between which many small peninsulas extend out into the body of the harbour. The harbour also houses several small islands, the largest of which is Brownsea Island. Chesil Beach is a barrier beach on the southwest coast of the county. It is long and stretches between West Bay and the Isle of Portland, although the name Chesil Beach is often only applied to the stretch south-east of Abbotsbury, where it is separated from the land behind it