 The Kursaal site was opened in 1894 by father and son Alfred and Bernard Wiltshire Tollhurst on four acres of land purchased the previous year, as the 'Marine Park and Gardens'.In July 1901 they opened a grand entrance pavilion, the Kursaal Palace, designed by George Sherrin and John Clarke, containing a circus, ballroom, arcade, dining hall and billiard room.The word "Kursaal" is German, meaning a "Cure Hall" or spa, and it seems to have been adapted to mean a place of healthy amusement.