Exhibition Park is a public park connected to the south-eastern corner of the
Town Moor,
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...
, England. The park is home to numerous facilities including sports areas, a boating lake, playgrounds and a skatepark.
History
![Tree lined path, Exhibition Park (geograph 3072285)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/Tree_lined_path%2C_Exhibition_Park_%28geograph_3072285%29.jpg)
The Town Moor Improvement Act 1870 determined that two parcels of land, each of , would be developed for recreation. One would become
Leazes Park
Leazes Park is a Grade II listed park urban park in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is the city's oldest park, opened in 1873, and lies to the west of the city centre. The park contains a lake above the course of the Lort Burn. It is next to ...
with the other at the
Town Moor. The original location of the park was to be the Bull Park where the City’s bull was penned for stud. The site was the wedge of land at the corner of Claremont Road and the Great North Road. Later this land became the
Hancock Museum
The Great North Museum: Hancock is a museum of natural history and ancient civilisations in Newcastle upon Tyne, England.
The museum was established in 1884 and was formerly known as the Hancock Museum. In 2006 it merged with Newcastle Univers ...
. The committee realised that the Bull Park was too small for the Exhibition and requested Town Moor recreation ground. This is where the current park is now. The
Royal Mining Engineering Jubilee Exhibition was held in 1887 and proved to be a tremendous success, attracting 2,000,000 visitors.
The name Exhibition Park was first used during the Jubilee Exhibition of 1887 but the old name of Bull Park remained for some time. The only remaining item from the 1887 Exhibition is the
grade II listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
bandstand,
which dates from 1875.
The North East Coast Exhibition
This
North East Coast Exhibition of Industry, Science and Art was held at the Exhibition Park from May to October 1929 and was opened by the
Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...
on 14 May 1929. It was a symbol of pride and industrial success of the region and at the same time an advertisement for local industry and commerce. The Palace of Arts is the only building still remaining in the park today from this exhibition.
*During 24 weeks operation a total of 4,373,138 people attended.
*Gold watches were given to each one-millionth visitor.
*Seven criminal offences recorded (six drunken offences and one pick-pocketing)
*It closed on 26 October 1929 with a fireworks display.
Museum of Science and Industry
Between 1934 and 1983, a science museum was located in the Palace of Arts in Exhibition Park.
Due to lack of space, in 1983 the collections moved to the former Co-Op warehouse in Blandford Square, which later became the
Discovery Museum
The Discovery Museum is a science museum and local history museum situated in Blandford Square in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It displays many exhibits of local history, including the ship, ''Turbinia''. It is managed by Tyne & Wear Archives ...
.
Military Vehicle Museum
A military vehicle museum was then housed within the Palace of Arts, from 1983 until 2006. For a period of time, it continued to house ''
Turbinia
''Turbinia'' was the first steam turbine-powered steamship. Built as an experimental vessel in 1894, and easily the fastest ship in the world at that time, ''Turbinia'' was demonstrated dramatically at the Spithead Navy Review in 1897 and set ...
'', the first
turbine
A turbine ( or ) (from the Greek , ''tyrbē'', or Latin ''turbo'', meaning vortex) is a rotary mechanical device that extracts energy from a fluid flow and converts it into useful work. The work produced by a turbine can be used for generating e ...
-powered
steamship
A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...
, which was moved to the Discovery Museum in 1994.
The city council put the building up for sale in 2011, declaring that it could no longer afford repairs. It was purchased by Shepherd Offshore Ltd who stated that they intended to create a collection of horse-drawn carriages and vintage vehicles. The planned opening date was Easter 2015. However, plans changed and the Palace of Arts now hosts Wylam Brewery, which opened on 27 May 2016.
Tyneside Summer Exhibition
This event began to be held by the city council in the 1960s, and attempted to capture many of the elements of the earlier exhibitions. It was last held in 1986, when a £60,000 loss was recorded.
Exhibition Park today
Facilities
*There are two croquet lawns, two tennis courts and one basketball court.
*There is a fenced playground with safety surface containing swings, slides, climbing frames, spring toys and seating.
*A disused boating lake.
*A park café.
*A skatepark has been developed at the main entrance to Exhibition Park.
*The Tyneside Society of Model and Experimental Engineers (TSMEE) operate a miniature railway in the park.
Wylam Brewery in the Palace of Arts
![Brasserie Wylam Newcastle Tyne 4](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/21/Brasserie_Wylam_Newcastle_Tyne_4.jpg)
Wylam Brewery started brewing at South Houghton Farm,
Heddon-on-the-Wall
Heddon-on-the-Wall is a village in Northumberland, England, located on Hadrian's Wall. Heddon-on-the-Wall is roughly west of the centre of Newcastle upon Tyne, and just outside Throckley. The place-name 'Heddon' means 'hill where heather grew'.
...
,
Northumberland
Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey.
It is bordered by land on ...
in 2000.
[
]
Dave Stone and Rob Cameron bought into the business in 2010, and soon realised that due to growing demand Wylam had to move site to realise its potential. The
Grade II listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
Palace of Arts was the last surviving building from the ''North East Coast Exhibition'' of 1929. It was still vacant after being refurbished by
Freddy Shepherd
Freddy Shepherd (29 October 1941 – 25 September 2017) was an English businessman and the chairman of Newcastle United football club from 1997 until 2007.
During his time at Newcastle, both as an active assistant to and later replacement of ...
, the former owner of
Newcastle United F.C.
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...
and became the new home of Wylam Brewery in May 2016. Alongside the new brewery is a
brewery tap
A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...
, which is open four days a week, and the "Grand Hall" which hosts live music and events.
Wylam produces high volumes of US-inspired heavily hopped
IPA's on its 50hl kit. It has engaged in collaborations with other
craft brewers
Craft beer is a beer that has been made by craft breweries. They produce smaller amounts of beer, typically less than large breweries, and are often independently owned. Such breweries are generally perceived and marketed as having an emphasis o ...
, such as
Cloudwater,
Magic Rock, Northern Monk and
Thornbridge. Growth in
keg beer
Draught beer, also spelt draft, is beer served from a cask or keg rather than from a bottle or can. Draught beer served from a pressurised keg is also known as
Name
Until Joseph Bramah patented the beer engine in 1785, beer was served dir ...
, which accounts for 70% of its output, has seen Wylam reduce its
cask
A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container with a bulging center, longer than it is wide. They are traditionally made of wooden staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. The word vat is often used for large containers for liquids, u ...
selection to three permanent real ales. Head brewer Ben Wilkinson said the brewery has successfully managed to keep both sets of drinkers happy.
Events in the Park
*A
mela (a celebration of Asian cuisine, music and art) has been held annually, over the August bank holiday weekend, since 1993.
*
Northern Pride, an
LGBT pride festival, is held annually, every July. In 2021, this event is scheduled to host UK Pride.
Refurbishment
Exhibition Park was restored by a £3million redevelopment programme funded by the
Heritage Lottery Fund
The National Lottery Heritage Fund, formerly the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), distributes a share of National Lottery funding, supporting a wide range of heritage projects across the United Kingdom.
History
The fund's predecessor bodies were ...
which had a projected completion date of late Summer 2014.
The refurbishment scheme included:
*Installation of a new children’s play area, which includes outdoor gym equipment.
*Traditional style railings and gates at the park entrance.
*A new skate park adjacent to the current one.
*New LED lighting in the underpass leading into the park.
*Resurfacing of the tennis courts.
*Restoration of the bandstand based on the original catalogue design.
*Reconstruction of the cafe with a new events/performance area adjacent.
*Engineering works to the lake to improve the environment and prevent flooding.
The park was officially reopened in July 2015.
Transport links
The nearest
Metro
Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to:
Geography
* Metro (city), a city in Indonesia
* A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center
Public transport
* Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...
and bus stations are at
Haymarket Haymarket may refer to:
Places
Australia
* Haymarket, New South Wales, area of Sydney, Australia
Germany
* Heumarkt (KVB), transport interchange in Cologne on the site of the Heumarkt (literally: hay market)
Russia
* Sennaya Square (''Hay Squ ...
and a taxi rank is located at Park Terrace near the park entrance.
Bibliography
*
References
External links
*{{Official website
Exhibition and Brandling Park Community TrustTimmonet Newcastle Archive
Palace of ArtsGoogle Earth 3D model
Parks and open spaces in Newcastle upon Tyne
World's fair sites in England