In a town that has the Royal Pavilion, it might be easy, and unfortunate, to overlook Preston Manor. On a day in March when we had to compete with bus tours for a sight of the Pavilion, we had Preston Manor all to ourselves. Entrance can be purchased singly or on a joint, money-saving ticket with the Pavilion. Built on the site of a much earlier building in 1738, it was added to substantially in 1905.
As a visitor, you are allowed complete access to more than twenty rooms in the house, requiring a guide only for the basement...and that is what this house is all about. There are the main rooms, the comfortable Edwardian life "upstairs", and the life of servitude "downstairs".
The visitor is left with the impression that the owners suddenly left the house, taking nothing with them. It is a incredibly intact time capsule of life one hundred years ago. The impression is largely correct. The house was purchased by the Stanford family in 1794. Ellen Thomas -Stanford moved into the house with her husband in 1903 and created the ambiance that is prevalent in the house now. When they passed away in 1932, the house was left to the Corporation of Brighton, some restoration was done and the house was presented to the public.