Hint:Mark Logan
Minster Park
Mark
Minster Park
Diane Gosforth
Diane Gosforth
First World War
Diane Gosforth
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I'm very pleased to welcome this evening's guest speaker, Mark Logan,
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who's going to tell us about the recent transformation of Minster Park.
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Over to you, Mark.
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Thank you.
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I'm sure you're all familiar with Minster Park.
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It's been a feature of the city for well over a century,
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and has been the responsibility of the city council for most of that time.
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What perhaps isn't so well known is the origin of the park:
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unlike many public parks that started in private ownership,
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as the garden of a large house, for instance,
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Minster was some waste land,
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which people living nearby started planting with flowers in 1892.
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It was unclear who actually owned the land,
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and this wasn't settled until 20 years later,
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when the council took possession of it.
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You may have noticed the statue near one of the entrances.
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It's of Diane Gosforth,
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who played a key role in the history of the park.
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Once the council had become the legal owner,
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it planned to sell the land for housing.
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Many local people wanted it to remain a place that everyone could go to,
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to enjoy the fresh air and natural environment -
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remember, the park is in a densely populated residential area.
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Diane Gosforth was one of those people,
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and she organised petitions and demonstrations,
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which eventually made the council change its mind about the future of the land.
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Soon after this the First World War broke out, in 1914,
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and most of the park was dug up and planted with vegetables,
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which were sold locally.
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At one stage, the army considered taking it over for troop exercises
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and got as far as contacting the city council,
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then decided the park was too small to be of use.
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There were occasional public meetings during the war,
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in an area that had been retained as grass.
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After the war, the park was turned back more or less to how it had been before 1914,
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and continued almost unchanged until recently.
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Plans for transforming it were drawn up at various times,
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most recently in 2013,
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though they were revised in 2015,
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before any work had started.
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The changes finally got going in 2016,
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and were finished on schedule last year.
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OK, let me tell you about some of the changes that have been made
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and some things that have been retained.
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If you look at this map,
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you'll see the familiar outline of the park,
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with the river forming the northern boundary,
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and a gate in each of the other three walls.
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The statue of Diane Gosforth has been moved:
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it used to be close to the south gate,
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but it's now immediately to the north of the lily pond,
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almost in the centre of the park, which makes it much more visible.
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There's a new area of wooden sculptures, which are on the river bank,
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where the path from the east gate makes a sharp bend.
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There are two areas that are particularly intended for children.
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The playground has been enlarged and improved,
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and that's between the river and the path that leads from the pond to the river.
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Then there's a new maze, a circular series of paths, separated by low hedges.
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That's near the west gate -
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you go north from there towards the river and then turn left to reach it.
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There have been tennis courts in the park for many years,
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and they've been doubled, from four to eight.
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They're still in the south-west corner of the park,
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where there's a right-angle bend in the path.
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Something else I'd like to mention is the new fitness area.
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This is right next to the lily pond on the same side as the west gate.
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Now, as you're all gardeners,
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I'm sure you'll like to hear about the plants that have been chosen for the park.
