Imber was always an isolated community, Salisbury Plain being relatively sparsely populated, and most of its residents were employed in agriculture or work that directly depended on it. The village had the elongated form of a linear village, and its main street followed the course of a stream known as Imber Dock. The only building to survive in a reasonable condition is the church; the rest became derelict or were demolished by the Army. In 1943 there was also a Baptist chapel (built in 1839, demolished in late 1970s), a post office, and a pub called the Bell Inn, which still stands; as does the manor house, Imber Court and a farmhouse, farm cottages, schoolroom and four council house type blocks built in 1938.