No, it's not the clock tower of Hotham Park House, it was a separate one in approximately in the centre of the site. I read John Knowles' (founder of Marwell Zoological Park) autobiography recently and note that it was in fact he and Oliver Graham Jones, who had been the first full time vet at London Zoo who carried out the inspection that led to the closure of 'Zootopia', as it was then known. He paints bleak picture about what had become of it. His account of the bear escape is perhaps a little exaggerated for effect but the short section about 'Bognor Regis Zoo' is interesting. I found it reassuring that two such well regarded individuals gave the advise that saw the collection close, rather than the decision effectively being made by the council but did think it a little odd that Knowles inspected; not that Bognor Zoo would ever have given Marwell much to worry about but the two were probably the closest potentially rival animal attractions in the area at the time (with the possible exception of Gatwick).
A Map? Could you put up a scan of that giude or map you have? I'd love to see it. Here's another scan.
More Hotham Park Pix I've been doing more digging and found more Hotham Park stuff. Here's pix of the GoKarts (from the 70s I was there so its how I rember it) and pedal cars (from earlier) and the boating lake that formed part of the same area. Not strictly the zoo, so it may not be allowed, but it puts the zoo in better context, so I hope I'm given leeway by Zoocht webmaster. Resolution is very low, so hard to make out. Sorry all I could get. Thanks, Look forward to yur map scan. I'v worked out what 'Evie' upload problem is. Thsi site does not like JPG format. Odd, 'cos it very comoon fo scans.
Pet's Corner Map Here is the map from about 1955. I think I have uploaded it correctly, it may need to be rotated.
Fnatastic! Love seeing this. Previously I stated that the windmil was at the entrance. Seems i was very wrong. See what nearly 40 years does to my memory? Where on earth did you get it? How did it survive? OK, under the microscope, it has been drawn with soem artistic licence I think. For exampl the relative postion for the boating lake, the shelter, and the car/cycle track is defintley wrong, see my previous pix, and Google Maps veiw of the area, but come on, what did I want?! The clocktower (24) I suspect is actually the pet hospital clocktower, also see a previously uploaded pic, but maybe a wild guess? As drawn it doe not look like the 'Pet Hospital' but then maybe more er, licence? Thank you for uplaoding this. What makes you say it is 1955? I've actually a past graphic designer and I see the 'ink-line" style is from that period, reprographics techniques (printing-plate technolgy) back then forced the style, but do you have anything else that says 1955? I would love to see those pix Evie has too. I am sure she was attempting to upload JPGs. (todays graphics technology is 'supposed' to be better!) If you're reading this Evie, save them as PNGs or GIFs or PDFs
I've found some more pix, these came from a Minuature Railway site, but shows the park near Rainbow's End. Source-site says taken early nineties, but with trees everywhere I'm guessing not long after the 1987 storm, unless trees were left liek that for 3-4 years, which seems unlikely? I have jsut realised that my uploaded picture of Humpty Dumpty has the Pets hospital in the background
And anoterh from the same batch and a piccy of the Hotham Park House, from a postcard. I can't date the psotcard, but my knowledge of reprographis tells me colour pc were 'in' by hte late 50s so I reckon earlier. Revise that, pc was psotally used 1952. My post 22 That 3 section postcard is from 1970. I rember the trains exactly as you see it. Another forum (thank you Rachel) on the subject jogged my memory too: Mickey Mouse on the green chair - an empty chair next to him for ME to sit in! The Three Bears' House
Have only just found this site, so hope i am writing in the right place. I have been obsessed with Rainbows end for the last 35 years, i have photos of myself with Humpty Dumpty and sitting in the green chair next to mickey mouse. When i revisited with my own children several years ago i found it all derelict i climbed over the fence and climbed through the undergrowth, found what was once the Three Bears house and the large pond. my own garden is now full of whacky things with life sized animals ...i was told the guy that last owned the park smashed everything up, apparantly the council were charging so much rent for the land they could't keep it going
Brilliant. I am not alone. A fellow HP obsessed 'lune'! As long as you know its not normal, you should be OK. If teh counceil had let soemone have it for free, it couldn't have made too much money, save for a sunny day, so if the council charged a high rent no wonder it went. Sad really. Bureaucrats... i think you may be R from another forum?? I threaded you. Please, i beg, put your pix up on here! i'd love to see Humpty Dumpty prperly, the only pic I have i uplaoded and its not good. Mickey again too. i've been banging out postcards here but you have stuff no one else has! Go to Youtube and see teh 1978 Bognor and 1960s clips. Bits of pets corner. You will like it. I DEMAND it!
Rainbows end photos Hello Friend! I promise i will put the photos on here in the next few days i even have a photo of me and my sister on the battery cars and my nan stuck in a boat in the middle of the boating pond. Its so good to know its not just me with a "Hotham problem" !!!!!!
I would really love to see those pix I'll hold you to that promise. Those mini-dodgem's took 10p a go, 10p was quite a bit back then. The large size pedal Go-Karts were a favourite. No wonder you Gran got stuck,the boats were battery powred, so you didn't get long. the guy would blow his whistle 10 secs after you got to middle. I would spend two weeks of my summer holidays with my Grandparents at Shripney. Every year. Hotham Park , the seafront, the pier, the arcades, crazy-golf, all paradise for a kid. I'd wander around on my own. Kids did that back then, that was 'normal'. HP along with the other boating lake with my toy yacht in Waterloo Gardens was glorious. See Flickr. for that. Late 60s early 70s Bognor, was an 8 year old's dream. Sadly, todays kids don't get that freedom. I won't tell anyone, about your 'problem'. The secret, is safe with me. I do find the tablets help.
i find the photos after 5 hours of searching. hope they have come out ok, never tried to upload to this site before..as for the battery cars i notice a sign saying 5p..must be older than you.. also you can see the animal cages in the background. ..now i'm off to recreate Humpty Dumpty in my garden i am trying and trying to upload the photos but it wont work AGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH
Pix Uploaded I claim no credit for the teh first four pix. spammysis has been having problems uplaoding pix. I stepped in to get these up, (BTW this site does not like JPG format files) I think tehy were taken mid 70s but spammysis will no doubt correct me. The Mickey & Boy pic I found on Flickr, mid 60s. One very iffy Mickey, and back tehn, did we care? I don't suppose we even noticed. Happy days. The baoting piccy is before my tiem - 50s. Wooden baots were reaplced by electric boats in the 60 & 70s. I'm gettign together a Bognor nostalgia site with high emphasis on 'kids Bognor', namely the stuff for the 'kids' of the 60s and 70s. Finding info is proving hard. The most knowledgable person I've found on the Pet Corner is a previous threader 'pacu'. I 'm sure he won't mind me quoting him...... So, if you have antything, pics memories facts about Kids Bognor, plesae, please let me have it!
Great to see a proper piccy of Humpty again, and I've just got hold of another 'Mickey' pic. Am i sad???! Definitely. See that above too. I'd alwasy thought it was 10p, but i see 5p for Dodgems. My memory is playing tricks again. If you see the postcard I posted, there were Go-karts there too. (in late 60s). Your pic shows no sign of them. The dodgems came in (I think) the early 70s, when the Gokarts (my fav) circuited araound them. In htis pic they're gone. But if I'm wrong, soemone will correct me. I've heard there's HP & PC & RE visitor guides sold on Ebay from the 50s and 60s, I would love to see one. rare to get. Does any one rember where Mickey and Humpty were? I always thought near the entrance, but now I wonder. I'd love to see those guides.
Pretty sure the Mickey Mouse thing was near the entrance, close to the castle-like enclosure for flamingoes. As far as I know, the only guidebook published by the zoo was in 1952. It features a rhesus monkey on the front cover, named Judy, along with Bognor's coat of arms. You wouldn't call it a feast of zoological information! The map posted above is from this guide.
I have a copy of this guidebook - they are not too uncommon. Its a shame that no guide books were published during the periods when the zoological collection was a bit more diverse. Much of the stock in '52 was bland to say the least.
OK, thanks Sooty M, I have seen talk of another 60s produced guide promised me by a lady that got to it before me on Ebay. But info is all a bit hazy, so we could be talking about the same animal - (see what I did there?) I'm get the feeling, there's people on here that knwo a whole ot more than I do... but I'm learning. Paradoxurus: You must have been typing as I wrote this. You HAVE this? I've been promised a photocpy. Please can you put a scan up?
Mickey Mouse and that special empty chair Mickey mouse was situated to the left of the little wooden cafe that sold ice creams, it was near the entrance before you got to the boating lake when i went back in the 90's you could still see the space where they were.My sister tells me she has a picture in colour i will try and find it.
Thanks spammysis. I WILL piece thsi together. Does any one know when the name chnaged. The badge picture I posted sasy 'Hotham Park Zoo', whereas us old duffers know it as 'Pets Corner', and for spammysis, it is 'Rainsbow's End'. I had it as 'Hotham Park Zoo' as a kid, because my Gran called it HPZ, but was it correctly 'Pets Corner' (late 60s) then? A few people have threatened this thread with lots of pix. I've tried to contact 'Evie' but no reply as yet.
