The Tile House, an octagonal building in the centre of the park, was built in 1883. The building was made for the Bath and West of England show – about 200 miles away – by the Aylesbury Tile Company to help show off all their different tiles. You can see lots of designs of tiles including bunches of grapes beside the door. Someone from Preston Park saw the building at the show and thought it would look lovely here in the park, so he bought it and had it moved here. It was originally a ladies’ toilet and was the first building to be erected in the park. It has had many uses over the years, including a place where people could hire bikes.
These fabulous photos by Rose Jones show the tiles in close up:
