Park History - HAMPSTEAD HEATH - 2012

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Park History

WEST HEATH > GOLDERS HILL

When John Bond was lord of the manor of Hendon (1790s) he built his manor house at Golders Hill.

(The Foundations can still be seen at the far end of The Park, past the bandstand and opposite North End and The Old Bull And Bush, off Hampstead Way)

Originally an 18th century house,Golders Hill House and its grounds were bought by the London County Council in 1898 for use as a public park by the people of London.

In 1897 Golders Hill, a large mansion with a 36-acre park, the West Heath, was put on the market.

In 1897 Golders Hill, a large mansion with a 36-acre park, the West Heath, was put on the market.

The estate had been created in the 1760s by Charles Dingley (He had converted his own house in North End as a mansion for Pitt, the elder.)

The last owner was Sir Spencer Wells, after whose death in 1897, the estate was put up for auction.
Thomas Barratt,chairman of A & F Pears, the soap factory managed to obtain it.
He resold it to a committee of guarantors at same price he bought it, £3,800  and thence it was opened to the public in December 1898.

It was the first public park in Hendon and the grounds of Golders Hill House were bought by the L.C.C. in 1899.

The house was destroyed in 1940.

The house did not continue as the centre of the manor after Barrat's death, but the name manor house remained.

This became Manor House hospital in 1917 during the First World War.

The hospital closed in 1999.  

Golders Hill Park is now managed by the City of London Corporation as part of the parkland and commons in and near . Unlike the rest of the Heath, Golders Hill Park is closed at night.

It adjoins the West Heath part of Hampstead Heath and is on the site formerly occupied by the large house which was bombed during World War II.

Its main characteristic is an expanse of grass, but it also has a formal, beautifully tended, flower garden next to a duck pond with a small humpback bridge, a separate water garden, which leads onto a larger pond with both black and white swans, a separate area for deer, near to a recently-renovated small zoo .

There are also tennis courts, a well subscribed playground and a putting green. A restaurant stands at the top of the park, on the site of the original house.

During the summer, children's activities are organised and through June and July there is live music on the bandstand on Sunday afternoons.

Unlike most of Hampstead Heath, dogs must be kept on a lead in the park.

The zoo has Alpacas, Maras, Red-legged Seriemas and White-naped Cranes.

(click here to see The Park's location on City-Of-London map)

present day area where The Mansion stood
present day area where The Mansion stood

click on any of the pictures to enlarge!

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