THE Mayor of Poole was among a specially selected group of guests at the launch of an exhibition celebrating the 200 year history of Upton Country Park.

The exhibition, which is taking place in the Gallery above the Tearooms, attempts to tell the two century story of the park.

It starts with the building of Upton House in 1816 and then takes visitors through the years when the house was in the hands of various owners and tenancies.

Then in 1957 the house and a package of land was gifted to the People of Poole by the Llewellin family.

However several uncertainties about the future culminated in a public meeting in February 1976, which is when The Friends of Upton Country Park was established as a registered charity to manage the house.

As well as celebrating 200 years since work on building the house began - this year also marks the 40th anniversary of the charity.

John Baggs, vice president of The Friends of Upton Country Park, said the exhibition was the perfect way to celebrate the achievements of the charity over the last four decades.

"The charity has flourished and changed over the last 40 years and I love the buzz of being actively part of this celebration of an organisation which can visibly demonstrate the achievements of so many over the years," he added.

"A huge part of the exhibition focuses on the Friends' extensive support and contributions through various projects in the house and park.

"One of the first projects was the renovation of the Walled Garden during 1978 - at the time the Friends contributed £300 to the project.

"During 2012, a major project was undertaken to again rejuvenate the Walled Garden, this time the Friends contribution to the project was £67,000.

Most of the projects funded by the Friends have aimed to improve the visitor experience to Upton House, in particular an extensive refurbishment of the library which cost £11,000.

Over 40 years, some £635,000 has been donated to projects in Upton Country Park and Upton House.

Mr Baggs added: "Apart from the financial contribution, the hours volunteered and professional services freely given to achieve this by members over the years have been enormous.

"Please come along to the exhibition and share our celebration. Who knows you may get bitten and sign up as a member of The Friends of Upton Country Park, to ensure we are flourishing for our Golden Jubilee in 2026."

The exhibition, which is open daily from 10.30am to 3.45pm, runs until Monday.

For more details go to www.uptoncountrypark.org.