The park was designed by Matthew Hall, the Borough’s surveyor and engineer.
John Peebles was appointed head gardener in 1886 and immediately set about creating the park that we know today out of the old waste spoil tips, or ‘ballast hills’. Remarkably, his diary, in which he reported on progress in the park every month to the Parks Committee, has survived. This diary proved to be an invaluable resource when planning the park’s restoration. The Park construction cost £20,000 and was opened by Sir John Mowbray, an Ecclesiastical Commissioner and formerly MP for Durham on 25 June 1890.
Photos:
South Tyneside Libraries
Terry Ford