Sir George Eliott Meyrick Tapps-Gervis-Meyrick, 3rd Baronet (1 September 1827 – 7 March 1896) was a land owner and developer, and served as

High Sheriff of Anglesey This is a list of Sheriffs of Anglesey. Following the conquest of Wales by Edward I, Anglesey was created a county of Wales under the Statute of Rhuddlan, 1284.Prior to 1974 the office now known as "High Sheriff" were styled "Sheriff" () On 1 A ...

in 1878. Sir George was born in

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

whilst his father was

member of parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for

New Romney New Romney is a market town in Kent, England, on the edge of Romney Marsh, an area of flat, rich agricultural land reclaimed from the sea after the harbour began to silt up. New Romney, one of the original Cinque Ports, was once a sea port, w ...

. He inherited his father's estate at age 15 and was later educated at

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

from 1846 to 1849. The third baronet adopted the name Meyrick in 1876 in compliance with the will of Owen Fuller Meyrick, a relative of his mother, from whom he inherited the estate of

Bodorgan Bodorgan is a village and community (Wales), community on the Isle of Anglesey, Wales, United Kingdom. According to the United Kingdom Census 2001, 2001 Census, there were 1,503 residents in the now former Wards of the United Kingdom, electoral ...

Anglesey Anglesey (; cy, (Ynys) Môn ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms a principal area known as the Isle of Anglesey, that includes Holy Island across the narrow Cymyran Strait and some islets and skerries. Anglesey island ...

. Sir George played an important role in the growth of

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...

: He was one of the sponsors of the Bournemouth Improvement Act 1856, which established an improvement commission, the town's first local government authority. As

lord of the manor Lord of the Manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as seig ...

he had a permanent place on the board of commissioners, though he rarely attended. Sir George was closely associated with the building of Bournemouth's pier in 1861. He was initially opposed to the building the railway to Bournemouth, as the direct line would intrude through his holdings at

Hinton Admiral Hinton Admiral is the estate and ancestral home of the Tapps-Gervis-Meyrick family and located in the settlement of Hinton, near Bransgore in Hampshire, England. It is a Grade I Listed building. The walled gardens to the north of the house and ...

. However, he was persuaded to change his mind by Sir Merton Russell Cotes, who acted as a go-between for those at Hinton Admiral and the local tradesmen of Bournemouth, in view of the benefits to the resort from the drastic cut in travelling time to London. Under the terms of the

Christchurch Inclosures Act 1802 The Christchurch Inclosure Act 1802 (42 Geo. III c. 43) was a local and personal Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the dividing, allotting, and inclosing, certain commonable lands, and waste grounds within the parish of Christchur ...

, certain areas of Bournemouth had been set aside as commons under the trusteeship of the lord of the manor. The transformation of these commons into local authority parks was a contentious local issue that soured relations between Sir George and the townsfolk. Bournemouth's incorporation as a borough in 1890 settled the matter in the townsfolk's favour. After which Sir George co-operated fully, and the first of the new parks, opened in 1894, was named Meyrick Park in his honour.

References

* 1827 births 1896 deaths Baronets in the Baronetage of Great Britain High Sheriffs of Anglesey People from Dover, Kent Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford {{GreatBritain-baronet-stub