Ventnor Esplanade: the west end about 1865

The west end of Ventnor’s Esplanade was a popular place for the middle-classes to promenade in the 1860s and 1870s. Walkers on the esplanade would have had clear views of Danebury House on the bend of Bath Road with just beyond it, but facing seaward, three further buildings: Landsdowne House, Brooklyn Villa and Milanese Villa, all erected around 1860 and all part of the Hamborough Estate. With the exception of Milanese Villa (in the twentieth century called La Falaise), all were demolished over 1874-5 as a result of ground movement caused by water.

One property that has survived at the far end of the Esplanade itself is Undercliff House, recognisable today, of course, as the Spy Glass Inn, one of Ventnor’s most popular hostelries.

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