Derby Arboretum, Derby, Derbyshire, England

Joseph Strutt donated Derby Arboretum to Derby Town Council in 1840 and the site was officially opened on 16 September 1840. Strutt originally planned to create a botanical garden but was advised that this would be too costly to maintain. Instead he commissioned John Claudius Loudon to create an area of pleasure grounds which would also be educational. Strutt and Loudon were forced to compromise over the design. Strutt preferred to have more open spaces with only a small collection of trees whilst Loudon wished to have a large arboretum with few open spaces. The final design consisted of a collection of trees with two open spaces to enjoy the bandstand. Loudon was assisted in the design and implementation by his apprentice Mr Rauch.

Between 1845 and 1879 a further 2.6 hectares (6.5 acres) was purchased on land adjacent to the arboretum. This was in three separate lots brought in 1845, 1852 and 1879.

The park originally had an entrance fee only for those who could afford it.  Gradually the amount of free entrance days was extended. Derby Town Council abolished the entrance fee completely when they took over management of the site in 1882. 

The following is from the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest. 

HISTORIC DEVELOPMENT

In the early 19th century the site was a private pleasure and kitchen garden belonging to Joseph Strutt (1765-1844). Strutt was the third son of Jedediah Strutt (1726-1797), a prosperous Derby industrialist who had pioneered the improvement of the stocking frame. Strutt lived at Darley Abbey from 1818 until the death of his only son and his wife in about 1840, when he returned to live in St Peter's Street, Derby (Account of Joseph Strutt, Derby Record Office). In May 1839 Strutt commissioned a plan from J C Loudon (1783-1843) for a garden which he owned near his home to be laid out for public use. The commission required various existing features to be retained including some mature trees, a flower garden, a cottage, and an ivy-clad tool shed (Loudon 1840): these features had formed part of the earlier garden in which Strutt's children had played (Account). The public garden was not to be expensive to maintain, a factor which encouraged Loudon to propose an arboretum. Work on laying out the new public garden commenced in July 1839 under the supervision of Mr Tomlinson of Derby, while the formation of earth mounds and the planting of the new trees and shrubs was carried out by Loudon's assistant, Mr Rauch (Loudon 1840). Trees and shrubs were supplied by Messrs Whitley and Osborn of Chelsea and William Masters of Canterbury, while roses were sent from Thomas Rivers of Sawbridgeworth and mistletoe was supplied by Mr Godsall of Hereford; other plants were obtained from the Horticultural Society's garden. Two lodges and shelters designed by E B Lamb were built by Thompson of Derby, while seats and vases were donated and positioned by Strutt. The Arboretum was opened on 16 September 1840, when it was handed over to a board of trustees as a place of recreation for the inhabitants of Derby who might 'enjoy a rare opportunity of expanding their minds by the contemplation of nature'; (Garden Hist 1995). Strutt did not provide an endowment for the upkeep of the Arboretum, believing that while it should be open to the general public free of charge on Sunday afternoon and Wednesday, on other days 'a small sum should be required from persons entering the garden' (Loudon 1840); a system of annual subscription was also implemented. For some forty years, the anniversary of the opening of the Arboretum was celebrated with a fete which on average attracted 25,000 people from Derby and surrounding towns (Country Life 1976).

Joseph Strutt died in 1844, and the Arboretum continued to be managed by a committee of trustees along the lines outlined by Loudon in his Directions (1840) until about 1880. In 1882 the Arboretum was transferred from the trustees to Derby Town Council; today (2000) the site remains in the care of its successor, Derby City Council.

During the mid 19th century few changes were made to the Arboretum: a lodge incorporating a statue of Strutt and new entrance were constructed from Arboretum Square to the north to designs by Duesbury in about 1850; and in 1852 a public subscription was raised to lay out a recreation ground to the south of the Arboretum (Account). Further changes were made in the mid and late 20th century when surrounding mid 19th century streets were demolished and new housing constructed to the north and west of the site. The site was subject to a restoration programme in the late 1980s.