Victoria Park is a public park in Tunstall, in

Stoke-on-Trent Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England. It has an estimated population of 259,965 as of 2022, making it the largest settlement in Staffordshire ...

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, ...

, England. It is owned and operated by

Stoke-on-Trent City Council Stoke-on-Trent City Council is the local authority of Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. Since 1997 it has been a unitary authority, a district council which also performs the functions of a county council, independent from Staffordshire C ...

. Few significant changes have been made since the early 20th century; it is listed Grade II in

Historic England Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked with prot ...

Register of Parks and Gardens #REDIRECT Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England #REDIRECT Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England {{R from move ...

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History and description

The site for the park, former mine workings, was purchased by Tunstall Urban District Council, and the first sod was turned by the Chief Bailiff on 22 June 1897, marking the

Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria The Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria was celebrated on 20 and 21 June 1887 to mark the Golden jubilee, 50th anniversary of Queen Victoria's accession on 20 June 1837. It was celebrated with a National service of thanksgiving, Thanksgiving Serv ...

. The park was designed by the council surveyor, Absalom Reade Wood (1851–1922); he had an architect's practice in Tunstall, and designed buildings in the town including the Town Hall and the Queen Victoria Jubilee Buildings, which contained a library and public baths. Work progressed over several years. The boating lake and boathouse, bowing greens and tennis courts were completed by 1904. A clock tower was erected in 1907, donated in memory of William Adams (1833–1905), a pottery owner, by employees of his company. The tower stands on the south-west corner of an artificial terrace, on which there is a lawn containing rose beds and bordered by balustrades. The official opening took place on 18 June 1908, when the main gates, at the south-west corner of the park, were opened; the wrought-iron carriage gates, with an ornamental overthrow, were made in memory of Thomas Peake.

Later features

A pavilion, built in

Arts and Crafts The Arts and Crafts movement was an international trend in the Decorative arts, decorative and fine arts that developed earliest and most fully in the British Isles and subsequently spread across the British Empire and to the rest of Europe and ...

style, was completed in 1911; it was later named the Floral Hall, and is now a café."Parks - Tunstall Park (Victoria Park)"
City of Stoke-on-Trent. Retrieved 21 August 2023. A rockery and cascade near the northern boundary of the park were constructed about 1960. Refurbishment of the boathouse, bandstand and park gates, the renewal of footpaths and improvements to the play area, were carried out in 2020."£729k Stoke-on-Trent park revamp with upgraded play area, boathouse and bandstand set to start – but some improvements have been dropped"
''StokeOnTrent Live'', 30 July 2020. Retrieved 25 August 2023. Facilities include tennis courts, basketball courts, a playing field and outdoor gym equipment; there is a nature trail and wildflower areas. The lake has several species of water fowl including

mallard The mallard () or wild duck (''Anas platyrhynchos'') is a dabbling duck that breeds throughout the temperate and subtropical Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa. It has been introduced to New Zealand, Australia, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Arge ...

goosander The common merganser (North American) or goosander (Eurasian) (''Mergus merganser'') is a large sea duck of rivers and lakes in forested areas of Europe, Asia, and North America. The common merganser eats mainly fish. It nests in holes in trees. ...

coot Coots are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family, Rallidae. They constitute the genus ''Fulica'', the name being the Latin term for "coot". Coots have predominantly black plumage, and—unlike many rails—they are usual ...

and

moorhen Moorhens—sometimes called marsh hens—are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family (Rallidae). Most species are placed in the genus ''Gallinula'', Latin for "little hen." They are close relatives of coots. They are ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tunstall, Victoria Park Parks and open spaces in Staffordshire Areas of Stoke-on-Trent Tourist attractions in Stoke-on-Trent Grade II listed parks and gardens in Staffordshire