Nottingham Arboretum, Nottingham, England

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

A mid-19th-century public park designed by Samuel Curtis.

LOCATION, AREA, BOUNDARIES, LANDFORM, SETTING

Nottingham Arboretum is situated in the centre of Nottingham, immediately to the north-east of the General Cemetery. The 7.5 hectare site is bounded on the west by Waverley Street, on the north by houses on the south side of Arboretum Street, and on the south by the buildings of Nottingham Trent University. There is a private bowling green to the south-east. Addison Street forms the eastern boundary with, half way along, a tunnel leading under the road to a narrow strip of land which leads to the eastern entrance on North Sherwood Street. The Arboretum occupies a small valley with hills to the north and south, the lowest point being its south-east corner. The setting is urban, the Arboretum being set amidst housing, schools, and the university.

REFERENCES Used by English Heritage

R Mellors, Gardens, Parks and Walks of Nottingham and District (1925)

N Pevsner and E Williamson, The Buildings of England: Nottinghamshire (2nd edition 1979)

H Conway, People's Parks (1991)

Heritage Report: The Arboretum, Nottingham, (Landscape Design Associates 1998)

J Beckett, Nottingham, An Illustrated History (1997)

Maps

Jackson, Plan of Nottingham Arboretum, 1851-61 (reproduced in LDA report)

Wallis Gordon, Plan of Nottingham Arboretum, 1934 (reproduced in LDA report)

OS 25" to 1 mile: 1st edition published 1883; 2nd edition published 1915; 1934 edition
 

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

HISTORIC DEVELOPMENT

The Enclosure Act of 1845 enclosed fields and meadows used by the burgesses or freeholders of the City of Nottingham to graze their animals. To compensate for the loss of the open space used for recreation, the Act allotted space for a series of places of public recreation and public walks. Some 130 acres (about 54 hectares) made up of Queen's Walk and Queen's Walk Park (Meadow Cricket Ground), Victoria Park, Robin Hood Chase, Corporation Oaks, St Ann's Hill Avenue, Nottingham Arboretum, the General Cemetery, Waterloo Promenade, the Church Cemetery, and the Forest were created as public open spaces from the enclosures. Under the Enclosure Act, 17 acres (about 7 hectares) was allocated as public open space for Nottingham Arboretum. The Arboretum was designed by Samuel Curtis (1779-1860), the nurseryman and botanical publisher, and laid out by Nottingham Town Council between 1850 and 1852. It opened to the public in 1852. Further phases of activity in developing the Arboretum took place in the 1860s, 1890s, 1930s, 1950s, and 1970s.