Letter: Gardens have great worth
I have read with interest the letter from Cllr Ian Irvine in the Crawley Observer (January 25) regarding the proposed refurbishment of Worth Park gardens with the help of a substantial grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund. I take exception to the final paragraph where he states the ‘history of the gardens is unsourced and highly dubious’.
Worth Park was built by the Montefiores and the gardens laid out by the firm of James Pulham and Co, evidence for which can be found on the plinths in the garden.
The firm was widely used by many stately home owners in the 19th and early 20th century including Buckingham Palace.
A description of the gardens at Worth park can be found in a report in Country Life, September 1899, a copy of which is in the County Record Office, Chichester, under ref: MMC 1/1/2/1.
A sale catalogue of the estate dated September 16 1915 can be seen in Crawley Local Studies Library which also may refer to the gardens.
Claude Hitchens of Welwyn Garden City has investigated many of the gardens laid out by Pulham and Co and was astounded on his visit to Worth Park to see so much of their work still there.
I believe the Heritage Lottery Fund has funded refurbishment of other gardens by this firm as they were one of the leading garden designers for over 100 years.
It would have been most unlikely for the Heritage Lottery Fund to have invested their money unless they were convinced of their origins.
Crawley Council should be congratulated on owning one of these gardens and should do everything they can to put them back to they state they were originally in for all residents and visitors alike, to enjoy for many years to come.
Margaret Clark, archivist for the Miltonian Guild
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Crawley
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 12 C to 25 C
Wind Speed: 18 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 13 mph
Wind direction: East
Your view
Please sign in to be able to comment on this story.