Bailey Park is an

urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a city park, municipal park (North America), public park, public open space, or municipal gardens (United Kingdom, UK), is a park or botanical garden in cities, densely populated suburbia and oth ...

in the town of

Abergavenny Abergavenny (; , , archaically , ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community in Monmouthshire, Wales. Abergavenny is promoted as a "Gateway to Wales"; it is approximately from the England–Wales border, border with England and is loca ...

, in

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South East Wales, south east of Wales. It borders Powys to the north; the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the north and east; the Severn Estuary to the s ...

Wales. It was founded in 1884 on land donated by Crawshay Bailey, Junior. The park is home to Abergavenny Rugby Football Club. In the 20th century, the park had a

lido Lido may refer to: Geography * Lido (Belgrade), a river beach on the Danube in Belgrade, Serbia * Venice Lido, an 11-kilometre-long barrier island in the Venetian Lagoon, Venice, Italy * Ruislip Lido, a reservoir and artificial beach in Ruisl ...

, but this was later decommissioned and demolished. In the early 21st century, a campaigning group was established to work for its reinstatement. Bailey Park is registered Grade II on the

Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales Register or registration may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Register (music), the relative "height" or range of a note, melody, part, instrument, etc. * ''Register'', a 2017 album by Travis Miller (musician), Travis Miller ...

. The entrance gates, gate piers, walls and railings on the Hereford Road are listed at Grade II. The park is managed by

Monmouthshire County Council Monmouthshire County Council (or simply Monmouthshire Council) () is the governing body for the Monmouthshire principal area – one of the unitary authorities of Wales. The current unitary authority was created in 1996 and covers the eastern ...

History and description

Crawshay Bailey, Junior (1841-1887), son and heir of the

ironmaster An ironmaster is the manager, and usually owner, of a forge or blast furnace for the processing of iron. It is a term mainly associated with the period of the Industrial Revolution, especially in Great Britain. The ironmaster was usually a larg ...

Crawshay Bailey Crawshay Bailey (1789 – 9 January 1872) was an English industrialist who became one of the great iron-masters of Wales. Early life Bailey was born in 1789 in Great Wenham, Suffolk, the son of John Bailey, of Wakefield and his wife Susannah ...

Cyfarthfa Castle Cyfarthfa Castle (; ) is a castellated mansion that was the home of the Crawshay family, ironmasters of Cyfarthfa Ironworks in Park, Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. The house commanded a view of the valley and the works, which ‘at night, offer a tru ...

Merthyr Tydfil Merthyr Tydfil () is the main town in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, Wales, administered by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. It is about north of Cardiff. Often called just Merthyr, it is said to be named after Tydfil, daughter of K ...

, inherited some of land in Wales on his father's death in 1872. Bailey Jr. displayed no interest in his father's commercial and industrial activities, instead using his inherited wealth to set himself up as a country gentleman. Establishing his own country seat at Maindiff, outside of Abergavenny, he became a considerable benefactor to the town, while developing a large landholding around

Llantilio Pertholey Llantilio Pertholey () is a village and community (parish) in Monmouthshire, south east Wales. It is located to the north-east of the market town of Abergavenny, which it is part of, just off the A465 road to Hereford. The parish covers a large ...

and indulging in country sports, particularly

foxhunting Fox hunting is an activity involving the tracking, chase and, if caught, the killing of a fox, normally a red fox, by trained foxhounds or other scent hounds. A group of unarmed followers, led by a "master of foxhounds" (or "master of houn ...

. In 1883 Bailey leased 8 hectares of land known as Priory Fields, off the Hereford Road in Abergavenny, and laid out a public park. In 1894 the park was bought by the Improvement Commissioners, predecessors of Abergavenny Town Council, using money gifted by Bailey's heirs. The park was equipped with many of the facilities common to those established in the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the reign of Queen Victoria, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. Slightly different definitions are sometimes used. The era followed the ...

, including a

bandstand A bandstand (sometimes music kiosk) is a circular, semicircular or polygonal structure set in a park, garden, pier, or indoor space, designed to accommodate musical bands performing concerts. A simple construction, it both creates an ornamen ...

bowling green A bowling green is a finely laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of turf for playing the game of bowls. Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding of Thrupp, near Stroud, UK, invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep ...

s and

greenhouse A greenhouse is a structure that is designed to regulate the temperature and humidity of the environment inside. There are different types of greenhouses, but they all have large areas covered with transparent materials that let sunlight pass an ...

s. In 1939 a

was constructed but this was closed in 1996 due to concerns over operating and maintenance costs. The structure was later demolished. A campaigning group was established in around 2020 to campaign for the reconstruction of the lido and its reopening for public use, but the group announced its disbandment in late 2024. The park is home to Abergavenny Rugby Football Club which was founded in 1875. Bailey Park is listed at Grade II on the

. The entrance gates, gate piers, walls and railings on the Hereford Road are Grade II listed structures. The park is managed by

Gallery

Blue plaque, Bailey Park, Abergavenny (geograph 2572165).jpg, Blue plaque Park gates on Hereford Road, Abergavenny (geograph 6110788).jpg, The Grade II listed gates Bandstand in Bailey Park at Abergavenny (geograph 4392247).jpg, Bandstand

Footnotes

References

Sources

* {{cite book , last=Morgan, first=Irena , title=Abergavenny through Time , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mFaIAwAAQBAJ&dq=bailey+park+abergavenny&pg=PT83 , year=2012 , location=Stroud , publisher=

Amberley Publishing Amberley Publishing is a firm of publishers in Stroud, England, which specialises in non-fiction transport and history books. They were established in 2008 and the chief executive is Nick Hayward, who previously worked at AudioGo and Simon & Schu ...

, isbn=978-1-445-62644-4

External links

Photograph collection compiled by the Abergavenny Lido Group
Abergavenny Parks in Monmouthshire Sports venues completed in 1884 Registered historic parks and gardens in Monmouthshire