Today, Bournemouth is one of the favourite resorts on the south coast, but until the early nineteenth century, the area was just heathland where cattle grazed. In 1810, Lewis Tregonwell – regarded as the first inhabitant and founder of Bournemouth – visited the beach with his wife. She loved the area and persuaded him to build a house there. Tregonwell later bought more land and landowners planted pines on the heath, but there was no settlement at Bournemouth until 1837.The railway reached the town in 1870, which made it far easier for people to travel there and increased the number of visitors. Victorian Bournemouth, which was marketed as a health resort, grew at a phenomenal rate and many new buildings that appeared as the town developed remain today. In Bournemouth in 50 Buildings, authors Paul Rabbitts and Liz Gordon highlight the town’s significant architectural landmarks from across the centuries. Through a fascinating and diverse selection of buildings they tell the story of the town’s development, its people and their way of life. Among the places they focus on are churches, hotels, inns, houses, cinemas and educational establishments. The scope of buildings the authors have selected is incredibly wide – ranging from the grand to the modest – and many different architectural styles are featured. Readers will discover everything from beach huts and Boscombe Pier, to the Russell-Cotes Art Gallery and Museum together with modern office blocks and workplaces. Bournemouth in 50 Buildings offers an engaging and valuable historical perspective on the town.

Dr Paul Rabbitts has over 35 years of experience in designing, managing and restoring urban parks across the UK. As a qualified Landscape Architect, he is also a published author and regular contributor to journals and periodicals. As well as being a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and a Member of the Chartered Institute of Horticulture, he currently works full time for Norwich City Council as their parks manager. He is an author of books on architects Sir Christopher Wren and Decimus Burton as well as Regent’s Park, Richmond Park, Hyde Park, the wider Royal Parks and that icon of public parks, the Victorian and Edwardian bandstand, on which he is acknowledged as a UK expert and which was the subject of his PhD at the University of East Anglia. He lectures frequently on all things parks and can be contacted via his website www.paulrabbitts.co.uk . He lives in Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire. Liz Gordon has lived in Bournemouth and surrounding areas since the 1960s and has seen the town grow and evolve into the multicultural and diverse conurbation that it is today. She is Managing Director of Brilliant Fish PR & Marketing specialising in working with writers. Liz is Festival Director for the Sidmouth Literary Festival and is also a Visiting Lecturer at Bournemouth University.