Young records that though the new Urban District Council discussed changing the name, and took the poll in 1896,
“the proposed change of name to Pinecliffe was not approved by the Hants County Council, who felt that there was not sufficient concurrence of opinion to justify the change of name, and so the matter was dropped. It is curious that the word Pokesdown should raise such dislike, so that even at the present time [1988] many would object to saying that they live in Pokesdown”.137b2
‘Railway Passenger Stations in Great Britain’ by Michael Quick. 138
Changing the name of Pokesdown Station to Southbourne didn’t go ahead because “there were objections from a postal point of view” and a “great diversity of opinion on the matter”.137c
Bridget Baldwin’s ‘Historical Guide to St James the Greater, Pokesdown’, includes the information that in early 1931 “the Ecclesiastical Commissioners [Church of England] were asked if All Saints Church, [Oxford Avenue] Pokesdown could become All Saints Church, West Southbourne.” Baldwin describes All Saints as the “newly-built church set in an area of wealthy householders” as opposed to “the ageing Church of St James set in a poor, working-class area”. The Ecclesiastical Commissioners replied that they did not have the authority to change the name to West Southbourne.138a
Tony Crawley’s 1963 article on Pokesdown starts by saying:
“Pokesdown conjures up many pictures in people’s minds. It’s Little Pokesdown to many – unfair really, as it’s a widespread, bustling area of industry and social life. It’s the place where the trains don’t stop – to those who are glad they don’t. And, let’s be honest, to the majority, it’s the subject of ridicule in many a joke. Example: Q: Where are you spending your holiday? A: Pokesdown by the sea. And so on. It goes without saying, these ideas are wrong.”139
The copy and paste citation for this page:
The History of Rosebery Park Baptist Church and Pokesdown – Pokesdown: the name, Page 5. Author: Michelle Fogg. Date: May 2022. Url: https://roseberypark.org/history/pokesdown-the-name-5/
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Rosebery Park Baptist Church, 812-814 Christchurch Road, between Boscombe and Pokesdown, Bournemouth, BH7 6DF