Saltwell Park - Conception and Opening

Conception and Opening

At the turn of the 19th century, Gateshead was beginning to expand but, save a smattering of industrial elements mainly at Sheriff Hill and at the south shore of the River Tyne, the town and its surrounds were mostly agricultural and most of the town was covered by large, private estates. The largest of these was the Saltwell estate, which consisted of around 500 acres (200 ha) of land in a broad quadrangle between the Teams, Bensham and Low Fell. In 1805 this estate was broken up into a number of smaller estates including the Saltwell Cottage estate. By 1856 this had become the Saltwellside estate and was in the hands of William Wailes– a native of Newcastle upon Tyne who had become one of the leading exponents of stained glass in England and whose work can still be seen today in cathedrals at Chichester and Newcastle upon Tyne. In 1856 Wailes commissioned the design of a grand Victorian mansion for his family to live at Saltwellside. Work began in 1859 and continued until 1871 when Wailes' Saltwell Towers was finally completed. Saltwell Towers was a large, eclectic mansion in red brick with Gothic turrets and mock battlements.

Whilst Wailes was building Saltwell Towers, Gateshead was expanding and industrialising. The resultant air pollution, poor social conditions and general shortage of clean drinking water in the town led to concern about public health and gave rise to calls for the creation of public parks. One such call was made in 1857 when the editorial of the local newspaper, the Gateshead Observer, demanded that a park be built at Windmill Hills. In 1861, the owners of ten acres of land at Windmill Hills approached the town council and offered the land free of charge so long as it was used as a place of recreation for the people of Gateshead. The land was formally conveyed on 18 November 1861 and the opening of the first public park in Gateshead was celebrated by the closing of workplaces and a day of holiday in the town.

Gateshead Council subsequently considered other sites for a second park, but it was discouraged by the high prices being asked by the estate owners at Redheugh and Shipcote. The Shipcote estate was owned by Sir Walter James, who was approached by a council park committee in 1874 and asked how much would be required to purchase at least part of his estate. Whilst negotiations were ongoing, James' offer to sell part of his estate at £650 per acre was met by fierce criticism from members of the public and the council began to seek an alternative to the Shipcote proposal. The town clerk wrote to William Wailes to ask if he would be willing to sell his 37 acres (Bad rounding here15 ha) Saltwellside estate. On 11 November 1874, Wailes replied that the council could have his entire estate for £32,000 and, in March 1875, James told the park committee that he did not wish to compete with Wailes but that he would offer a subscription if the council went ahead at Saltwellgate. In March 1875 the park committee formally opened talks with Wailes and, after various proposals were considered and rejected, in September 1875 the council decided to buy the entire Saltwellgate estate for an increased total price of £35,000 after having secured a loan for the full amount from the Local Government Board. The agreement was formalised in November 1875 and included a provision to lease Saltwell Towers back to Wailes for the remainder of his life.

Having obtained the Saltwellgate estate, the council contacted local ornithologist and landscaper John Hancock and asked him to submit designs for the new park. When Hancock refused, citing the pressure of his existing work, the park committee retained Edward Kemp at four guineas a day until his plans were submitted and approved in February 1876. Kemp's plans were implemented over a period of years by borough surveyor James Bowyer at a cost of around £11,000. Original plans to officially open the park on Whit Monday 1876 were not realised, and the park was never officially opened, but nonetheless, public usage began in late 1876.