The Arboretum is a city park in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. It was the first designated public park in Nottingham, selected under the authority of section 53 of the St. Mary's Nottingham Inclosure Act 1845 ( 8 & 9 Vict. c. ''7'' ). The

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

and

horticultural Horticulture (from ) is the art and science of growing fruits, vegetables, flowers, trees, shrubs and ornamental plants. Horticulture is commonly associated with the more professional and technical aspects of plant cultivation on a smaller and mo ...

publisher, Samuel Curtis, oversaw the design of the park which officially opened on 11 May 1852. In 1986 it was Grade II* listed with

Historic England Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked with prot ...

. The

Arboretum An arboretum (: arboreta) is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees and shrubs of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, many modern arbor ...

is a

Green Flag Award The Green Flag Award is an international accreditation given to publicly accessible parks and open spaces, managed under licence from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, a UK Government department, by Keep Britain Tidy, ...

-winning park that contains more than 800 trees belonging to 65 species.

History

Nottingham mayor and lace manufacturer, Mr W Felkin, and Sheriff of the Borough of Nottingham, Mr. Ball, opened the park to of a crowd of 30,000 people. It was designed as a

botanical Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

collection, a tranquil place to relax, and a major attraction in the heart of Victorian

. From 1852 it has been open free of charge on Sunday, Monday and Wednesday, but charged 6d admission () on other days, or £1 () for a yearly permit. Nottingham Arboretum - refreshment rooms

Nottingham Arboretum - refreshment rooms

Refreshment rooms with a banqueting hall occupying the entire frontage, built by James Ebrank Hall to designs in the Tudor style by Henry Moses Wood, opened in 1852. The building also comprised a ladies' room, refectory, kitchen, entrance hall with staircase, and three chambers upstairs. The whole was constructed of brick with stone facings and a castellated front. The wings of the refreshment rooms were demolished in 1932. After 1957 the remainder of the building traded as a pub under the names, The Arboretum Rooms, The Arboretum pub (also known as 'The Pub in the Park'), Arboretum Hotel and Arboretum Manor. In 1965, the building was severely damaged by fire and had to be rebuilt almost completely. In 2006, another fire resulted in its demolition. Nottingham Arboretum Aviary

The Circular Aviary was opened in 1889, with cast-iron uprights and roof struts covered with modern steel mesh. The Upper Aviary was built in 1934 to house tropical birds. The Main Aviary of brick was constructed in 1955/6. The first bandstand was moved here from the green in Nottingham Castle in 1881 and placed in front of the Refreshment Rooms. A new one designed by city architect Frank Beckett Lewis replaced it in 1907.

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...

has designated the arboretum a Grade II* listed site on the Register of Historic Parks & Gardens and the park's Bell Tower,

bandstand A bandstand (sometimes music kiosk) is a circular, semicircular or polygonal structure set in a park, garden, pier, or indoor space, designed to accommodate musical bands performing concerts. A simple construction, it both creates an ornamen ...

and Circular

Aviary An aviary is a large enclosure for confining birds, although bats may also be considered for display. Unlike birdcages, aviaries allow birds a larger living space where Bird flight, they can fly; hence, aviaries are also sometimes known as flig ...

have all received Grade II listing protection. ''Arboretum'' was the name of a ward in the City of Nottingham until 2019, when it was merged with the Hyson Green ward to form the ''Hyson Green and Arboretum'' ward. At the time of the 2011 census, the former Arboretum ward had a population of 13,321.

Facilities and events

There is an

aviary An aviary is a large enclosure for confining birds, although bats may also be considered for display. Unlike birdcages, aviaries allow birds a larger living space where Bird flight, they can fly; hence, aviaries are also sometimes known as flig ...

built in 1889 that is

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

, and a

built in 1907 by Frank Beckett Lewis that is also Grade II listed. There have been many functions held at the Arboretum including the annual Nottingham Pride festival.

Listed buildings within the Arboretum

In addition to the Bell Tower, the aviary and the bandstand, the Arboretum contains a number of other

listed buildings In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

, all at Grade II. These include: the main gateway and entrance; two lodges at the south-west and east; a pedestrian subway, all by Henry Moses Wood and dating from 1851–52; a statue of

Feargus O'Connor Feargus Edward O'Connor (18 July 1796 – 30 August 1855) was an Irish Chartism, Chartist leader and advocate of the Land Plan, which sought to provide smallholdings for the labouring classes. A highly charismatic figure, O'Connor was admired ...

of 1859 by J. B. Robinson; and a war memorial to the 59th (2nd Nottinghamshire) Regiment of Foot of 1862–63 by Marriott Ogle Tarbotton. The

cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, usually dome-like structure on top of a building often crowning a larger roof or dome. Cupolas often serve as a roof lantern to admit light and air or as a lookout. The word derives, via Ital ...

of the war memorial formerly contained a bell looted by British troops from a temple in Canton during the

Second Opium War The Second Opium War (), also known as the Second Anglo-Chinese War or ''Arrow'' War, was fought between the United Kingdom, France, Russia, and the United States against the Qing dynasty of China between 1856 and 1860. It was the second major ...

; this was removed to the regimental museum in 1956. Two of the cannon were captured at Sebastopol in 1854–55 during the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

and the other two are replicas.*Gateway, Screen Walls, and Railings at South West Entrance to Arboretum: *Lodge at South West Entrance to Arboretum: *Lodge, Gate and Screen Walls at East Entrance to Arboretum: *Memorial to Samuel Morley (MP) 1920 by Joseph Else: *Pedestrian Subway, Railings and Walls on East Side of Arboretum: *Statue of

by JB Robinson of Derby: *War Memorial to the 59th (2nd Nottinghamshire) Regiment of Foot on South Side of Arboretum, 1862-63 by Marriott Ogle Tarbotton:

References

External links

Nottingham Arboretum park information
by

Nottingham City Council Nottingham City Council is the local authority for the city of Nottingham, in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire in the East Midlands region of England. Nottingham has had a council from medieval times, which has been reformed on numerous ...

Hyson Green and Arboretum ward information
by Nottingham City Council {{DEFAULTSORT:Arboretum, The

Tourist attractions in Nottinghamshire Gardens in Nottinghamshire

Parks and open spaces in Nottinghamshire

Grade II* listed parks and gardens in Nottinghamshire