Visitors in Rock Park, Llandrindod Wells
Radnorshire Museum

Tennis is a game with a very long history but did not develop into the modern game of lawn tennis until the 1870s. The above photograph shows a group of tourists in Llandrindod Wells' Rock Park, two of whom are about to have - or have just completed - a game of tennis. The child below is a picture from the family photographs of the Lomaxes of Bodfach, Llanfyllin.

Tennis Courts and Croquet lawns, Llandrindod Wells
Radnorshire Museum

The land in front of South Crescent in the town was given over to tennis courts and croquet lawns as shown in this photograph:

Croquet had also been in existence for many years, and in the 1830s had been developed as an outdoor game by a French doctor who wanted to use it as a form of exercise for his patients. It was therefore popular in the Southern French spas at the time and was rapidly adopted in Britain. The Pump House Hotel had a croquet lawn directly beside the building: