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Main article: History of Bournemouth
A section of a 1759 map of Hampshire by Isaac Taylor, showing the Manor of Christchurch and the area around the Bourne chine
There were some prehistoric settlements in the area, notably along the River Stour, including Longham where a skull thought to be 5,500 years old was found in 1932. Bronze Age burials near Moordown, and the discovery of Iron Age pottery on the East Cliff in 1969, suggest there may have been settlements there during that period. Hengistbury Head, added to the borough in 1932, was the site of a much older Palaeolithic encampment.
In the 12th century, the region around the mouth of the River Bourne was part of the Hundred of Holdenhurst. The hundred later became the Liberty of Westover when it was extended to include the settlements of North Ashley, Muscliff, Muccleshell, Throop, Iford, Pokesdown, Tuckton and Wick, and incorporated into the Manor of Christchurch. Although the Dorset and Hampshire region surrounding it had been the site of human settlement for thousands of years, Westover was largely a remote and barren heathland before 1800. In 1574, the Earl of Southampton said that the area was "Devoid of all habitation". As late as 1795, the Duke of Rutland recorded that "... on this barren and uncultivated heath there was not a human to direct us".
During the latter half of the 16th century James Blount, 6th Baron Mountjoy, began mining for alum in the area, and at one time part of the heath was used for hunting, although by the late 18th century little evidence of either event remained. No-one lived at the mouth of the Bourne river and the only regular visitors to the area before the 19th century were a few fishermen, turf cutters and gangs of smugglers.
A photochrom of Invalids' Walk, 1890s
19th century[edit]
Prior to the Christchurch Inclosures Act 1802 (42 Geo. 3. c. 43 Pr.), more than 70% of the Westover area was common land. The act, together with the Inclosure Commissioners' Award of 1805, transferred 5,000 acres (2,000 ha) into the hands of five private owners, including James Harris, 1st Earl of Malmesbury, and Sir George Ivison Tapps.
In 1809, the Tapps Arms public house was built on the heath. In 1812, the first official residents, retired army officer Lewis Tregonwell and his wife, moved into their new home built on land purchased from Tapps. The area was well known to Tregonwell who, during the Napoleonic Wars, spent much of his time searching the heath and coastline for French invaders and smugglers.
Rise of beach culture[edit]
Anticipating that people would come to the area to indulge in the newly fashionable pastime of sea-bathing, an activity with perceived health benefits, Tregonwell built a series of villas on his land between 1816 and 1822, which he hoped to let out. The common belief that pine-scented air was good for lung conditions, and in particular tuberculosis, prompted Tregonwell and Tapps to plant hundreds of pine trees. These early attempts to promote the town as a health resort meant that by the time Tregonwell died in 1832, Bournemouth had grown into a small community with a scattering of houses, villas and cottages. The town ultimately grew around the scattered pines and tree-lined walk to the beach, later to become known as the Invalids' Walk.
After the death of Tapps in 1835, his son Sir George William Tapps-Gervis inherited his father's estate. He hired the young local architect Benjamin Ferrey to develop Bournemouth Gardens along the coastal area on the east side of the stream. Bournemouth's first hotel, later to become part of the Royal Bath Hotel, opened in 1838 and is one of the few buildings designed by Ferrey still standing and operating. Bournemouth grew at a fast rate, with Tapps-Gervis developing the area similarly to the south coast resorts of Weymouth and Brighton. Despite enormous investment, the town's share of the market remained modest.
In 1841, Tapps-Gervis invited the physician and writer Augustus Granville to stay. Granville was the author of The Spas of England, which described health resorts around the country, and as a result of his visit, he included a chapter on Bournemouth in the second edition of his book. The publication of the book, and the increase in visitors seeking the medicinal use of seawater and the pine-scented air, helped the town to grow and establish itself as an early tourist destination.
In the 1840s Benjamin Ferrey was replaced by Decimus Burton, whose plans for Bournemouth included the construction of Bournemouth Gardens alongside the Bourne stream, an idea first mooted by Granville. 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. A second suggestion of Granville's, a sanatorium, was completed in 1855 and greatly raised Bournemouth's profile as a place for recuperation.
A view of Bournemouth showing the temporary wooden jetty that was replaced by an iron pier in 1880
At a time when the most convenient way to arrive in the town was by sea, a pier was considered to be a necessity. The Holdenhurst parish vestry was reluctant to find the money, and an attempt to raise funds privately in 1847 only succeeded in financing a small 100-foot (30 m) jetty. The Bournemouth Improvement Act 1856 (19 & 20 Vict. c. xc) granted greater financial autonomy to the town and a pier was approved that year. A number of wooden structures were built before an 838 feet (255 m) cast iron design by Eugenius Birch was completed in 1880. 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.
A photochrom of the entrance to the pier, 1890s
Introduction of railways and mass tourism[edit]
In 1870, the arrival of the railways precipitated a massive growth in seaside and summer visitors to the town, especially from the Midlands and London. In 1880, Bournemouth had a population of 17,000. In 1900, when railway connections to Bournemouth were at their most developed, the town's population had risen to 60,000 and it had become a favourite location for visiting artists and writers.
Bournemouth was greatly improved during this period through the efforts of Sir Merton Russell-Cotes, the town's mayor and a local philanthropist, who helped to establish improved's first library and museum. The Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum was housed in his mansion. After his death, it was given to the town. Bournemouth became a municipal borough in 1890 and a county borough in 1900.
20th century[edit]
As Bournemouth's growth increased in the early 20th century, the town centre spawned theatres, cafés, two art deco cinemas, and more hotels. Bournemouth Corporation Tramways was established in 1902, becoming the town's first public transport system. In 1908, a deadly tram crash in the town gardens killed seven people. Other new buildings constructed included the war memorial in 1921 and the Bournemouth Pavilion, the town's concert hall and grand theatre, finished in 1925.
The Bournemouth Blitz saw heavy damage to the town during the Second World War despite initially escaping heavy bombing. A raid by German fighter bombers on 23 May 1943 killed 131 people and damaged 3,359 buildings, with two large hotels being completely destroyed. It is believed that the large number of RAF airmen billeted in the town may have been the reason for the attack. The seafront incurred damage when it was fortified against invasion. The cast iron lampposts and benches along the beach were removed and melted down for munitions, as was much of the superstructure from both Bournemouth and Boscombe piers, before they were breached to prevent their use by enemy ships. The large amounts of barbed wire and anti-tank obstacles along the beach, and the mines at the foot of the chines, took two years to remove when peace was achieved.The Waterfront Cinema and Leisure Complex, now demolished
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution stationed an inshore lifeboat at Bournemouth between 1965 and 1972. Coverage for the area has otherwise been provided from Poole Lifeboat Station. In 1984, the Bournemouth International Centre (BIC), a large conference and exhibition centre, was constructed near the seafront. In 1985, Bournemouth was the first town in the United Kingdom to introduce and use CCTV cameras for public street-based surveillance.
In August 1993, the IRA orchestrated a terrorist attack in the town centre. The only injuries sustained were minor, but over £1 million in damage was caused.
21st century[edit]
From 2000 to 2001 the Tesco bomb campaign hit the town with a plot to extort money from Supermarket giant Tesco. Visitors to the town plummeted during the campaign, especially after a bomb exploded at an elderly woman's home after she opened a letter sent by the bomber. During the eight months, over seven bombs were found by Dorset Police, ranging from small letter bombs, to pipe bombs and parcel bombs. The culprit was found to be Robert Edward Dyer, he was sentenced to 12 years in prison.
In 1998, the Waterfront complex, which was intended to hold an IMAX cinema, was constructed on the seafront. The 19-metre-high (62-foot) concrete and smoked glass building featured a wavy roof design, but was despised by residents and visitors alike because it blocked views of the bay and the Isle of Purbeck. In 2005, it was voted the most hated building in England in a 10,000-person poll conducted by the Channel 4 programme Demolition, and was pulled down in spring 2013.
Bournemouth was twice unsuccessful in its bids for city status, first at the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II in 2012, and again in the Platinum Jubilee Civic Honours in 2022.
