An interim period of many years saw the hamlet referred to as Bellagio or Bellaggio until the late 19th century. Until the enclosure (privatisation) of the Lingfield Commons in 1816, Dormansland consisted of a few farms and cottages. A Baptist Chapel was built in 1796, and a National School in 1851. By the opening of the Dormans railway station in 1884 the village had most of its modern layout, a small village quantity of 'villas and bungalows' having been constructed from 1880 until 1885.