Hotel | The History of Bournemouth
A Brief History of Bournemouth
The Dorset and Hampshire region, surrounding Bournemouth, has been the site of human settlement for thousands of years. However in 1800 the Bournemouth area, was largely remote. No one lived at mouth of the Bourne River and, until the 16th century, the only regular visitors were a few fishermen, turf cutters and gangs of smugglers.
During the Tudor period the area was used as a hunting estate, ‘Stourfield Chase’, but by the late 18th century only a few small parts of it were maintained, including several fields around the Bourne Stream and a cottage known as Decoy Pond House, which stood near where Bournemouth Square is today.
Until 1802, with the exception of the estate, most of the Bournemouth area was common land. The Christchurch Inclosures Act 1802 and the Inclosure Commissioners’ Award of 1805, transferred hundreds of acres into private ownership for the first time.
In 1809, the Tapps Arms public house appeared on the heath. A few years later, in 1812, the first residents, retired army officer Lewis Tregonwell and his wife, moved to the area and purchased land from from Sir George Ivison Tapps, where they built a new home. Tregonwell began developing his land for holiday letting by building a series of sea villas and later, in association with Tapps, he planted hundreds of Pine trees, providing a sheltered walk to the beach (later to become known as the ‘Invalids walk’). The town would ultimately grow up around its scattered pines and by the time Tregonwell died, in 1832, Bournemouth had grown into small community with a scattering of houses, villas and cottages.
In 1835, after the death of Sir George Ivison Tapps, his son Sir George William Tapps-Gervis inherited his father’s estate. Bournemouth started to grow at a faster rate as George William started developing the seaside village into a resort similar to those that had already grown up along the south coast such as Weymouth and Brighton. In 1841, the physician and writer Augustus Granville visited the town. Author of the The Spas of England, which described health resorts around the country, Dr Granville included a chapter on Bournemouth in the second edition of his book. The publication of the book, as well as the growth of visitors to the seaside seeking the medicinal use of the seawater and the fresh air of the pines, helped the town to grow and establish itself as an early tourist destination.
In the 1840s the fields south of the road crossing (later Bournemouth Square) were drained and laid out with shrubberies and walks. Many of these paths including the ‘Invalids walk’ remain in the town today; forming part of the Pleasure Gardens, which extend for several miles along the Bourne stream. The Pleasure Gardens were originally a series of garden walks created in the fields of the owners of the Branksome Estate in the 1860s. In the early 1870s all the fields were leased to the Bournemouth Commissioners by the freeholders. Parliament approved the Bournemouth Improvement Act in 1856. Under the Act, a board of 13 Commissioners was established to build and organise the expanding infrastructure of the town, such as paving, sewers, drainage, street lighting and street cleaning. It was at this time that two large villas on Richmond Hill were amalgamated to make Stewarts Hotel, which was later to become The Norfolk Royale Hotel Bournemouth. The History of The Norfolk Royale Hotel is as fascinating as that of the town, read more about it here.
During the late 19th century the town continued to develop. The Winter Gardens were finished in 1875 and the cast iron Bournemouth pier was finished in 1880. The arrival of the railways allowed a massive growth of seaside and summer visits to the town, especially by visitors from the Midlands and London. In 1880 the town had a population of 17,000 people but by 1900, when railway connections were at their most developed, the town’s population had risen to 60,000. It was also during this period that the town became a favourite location for visiting artists and writers including Mary Shelley. The town was improved greatly during this period through the efforts of Sir Merton Russell-Cotes, the town’s Mayor and a local philanthropist. He helped establish the town’s first library and museum. The Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum was housed in his mansion and after his death it was given to the town.
As the town’s growth increased in the early 20th century, the town centre spawned theatres, cafés, two art deco cinemas and more hotels in Bournemouth. Other new buildings included the War Memorial in 1921 and the Bournemouth Pavilion, the towns concert hall and grand theatre finished in 1925. The town escaped great damage during the Second World War but saw a period of decline as a traditional seaside resort in the post war era.
In more recent times, continued investment and a vision for future tourism in Bournemouth has once again seen the town fast becoming the UK’s first choice the British holiday maker.
Bournemouth is synonymous with tourism success, and from the very beginning, was designed to be a high quality, purpose built resort. This strong foundation of a clear direction coupled with the stunning natural assets of the area, has enabled Bournemouth to prosper and grow over two centuries into an internationally recognised tourism destination with a high quality of life.
