Rowntree Park

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The lake and lych gate

Rowntree Park is a 20-acre (8.1 ha) Grade II listed park in Clementhorpe, York, England, open to the public, opened on 16 July 1921.[1]

Facilities

The park features children's playgrounds, tennis courts, bowling greens, basketball court, skateboarding area and general areas for picnicking. The park also features a large lake, a canal and a water cascade, and is home to many ducks, swans and Canada geese, as well as a large dovecote.[2] The park's outdoor swimming pool was demolished in the 1980s, despite strong public support for keeping it open.[3] The park is also home to a reading cafe, which is a branch of the York Explore public library. The cafe is located in the Rowntree Park Lodge, which previously also housed the park keeper's house, and a boat house.[4][5]

History

A statue in the park, with the dovecote and Rowntree Lodge visible in the background.

It was created in memory of employees of Rowntree's who died in the First World War, and was opened on 16 July 1921 by local entrepreneur and philanthropist Joseph Rowntree. Upon their purchase in 1919, the 17 acres (6.9 ha) of land cost £1,500.[1] The park was originally laid out by Fred Rowntree and W.J. Swain between 1919 and 1921.[6] The park now covers an area of 25 acres (10 ha), with it being extended in 1926/7 with the purchase of Clementhorpe allotments, and further in 2000 with the purchase of Butcher Terrace football fields.[2] In 1924, public swimming baths were opened in the park,[7] while an aviary opened at the Richardson Street entrance in 1929, but was removed during the 1950s.[8][9]

The gates at the riverbank entrance were erected in 1954, are eighteenth-century and believed to have come from Richings Park, Iver. They were given by the company as a memorial to the people of York who died in the Second World War. There are further commemorative plaques on the dovecote.[10][6]

Thr park was listed as Grade II by Historic England in 1999.[9] The park celebrated its centenary in July 2021 with an open day and a number of activities in the park.[11]

Each year since 2004 the park has won a Green Flag Award. This is awarded for reaching the English and Welsh national standard for parks and green spaces.[12]

The park was flooded several times by the River Ouse in late 2023 and 2024, which lead to the park being closed until a cleanup operation could be completed. The park reopened in March 2024.[13]

Safety concerns

In January 2026, it was reported that children were seen on the frozen lake.[14] A month later, it was reported that there were water-filled holes that were dangerous to children.[15] The council put safety barriers around the holes, but we're criticised by local people as overkill, especially as they were next to the un-barriered lake.[16]

References

  1. "History of Rowntree Park". Friends of Rowntree Park. Retrieved 3 May 2025.
  2. "The Park". Friends of Rowntree Park. Retrieved 3 May 2025.
  3. "Rowntree Park: History of York". www.historyofyork.org.uk. Retrieved 3 May 2025.
  4. "Rowntree Park Reading Cafe". Explore York. Retrieved 3 May 2025.
  5. "Rowntree Park". The Rowntree Society. Retrieved 3 May 2025.
  6. Nikolaus Pevsner; David Neave (2002). The Buildings of England. Yorkshire: York and the East Riding. Yale University Press. p. 201. ISBN 0300095937.
  7. "New Swimming Baths Rowntree Park, York". British Builder. Vol. 10–11. 1924. p. 337.
  8. "Today's history snippet is about animals in Rowntree Park". Facebook - Friends of Rowntree Park Posts. 18 April 2020.
  9. "Rowntree Park". Historic England. 13 October 1999.
  10. "Rowntree Park Lychgate and gates". Friends of Rowntree Park. 27 June 2020. Retrieved 3 May 2025.
  11. "Centenary". Friends of Rowntree Park. Retrieved 3 May 2025.
  12. "Rowntree Park - Parks and open spaces directory". City of York Council. Retrieved 3 May 2025.
  13. "Flood-hit park in York opens after major clean-up". BBC News. 11 March 2024.
  14. "Warning after children seen playing on frozen lake". BBC News. 5 January 2026.
  15. "Fears over water-filled holes near Rowntree Park play area". Gazette & Herald. 10 February 2026.
  16. "'World's going mad' - Locals mock new safety fence installed around 5in deep puddle - next to open lake". The Yorkshire Post. 13 March 2026.

53°56′50″N 1°04′57″W / 53.94722°N 1.08250°W / 53.94722; -1.08250