Local historian: The history of Sidmouth's Connaught Gardens

Sometime before 1820, Emmanuel Lousada who owned Peak House purchased a plot of land above Chit Rocks and built a marine villa called Cliff Cottage.

The cottage was changed and enlarged over the years and renamed Sea View. The kitchen garden stood where the sunken garden is now, and a pseudo-castle and boat house were built on what was the old lime kiln.

L: Sea View cottage. R: The pseudo-castle and boat house

Boats could be lowered down into the sea by the use of ropes and davits, which protruded from the tower above.

The cottage had several owners and was once linked with a murder. The last resident, a Mr Jemmet, was considered by locals to be a bit eccentric and a recluse.

The cottage and garden were in a poor state of repair and offered for sale in 1930.

The gardens open

Sidmouth Urban District Council purchased the property, demolished the house and after a considerable amount of work, opened the gardens for public use.

Work on constructing the gardens

The grand opening was held on 3rd November 1934 and was conducted by the 84-year-old son of Queen Victoria, Field Marshal HRH the Duke of Connaught.

The grand opening of the gardens

Apart from the high walls, clock tower, tiny grotto and boat house (now the refreshment kiosk), very little of the original structure remains today.

The grotto today

SEE ALSO: The history of the now-demolished Blackmore Hall