Stanley Park, Liverpool

Infobox park
park = Stanley Park


image size =
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type = Municipal
location = Liverpool
coordinates =
size = 45 hectares
opened = 14th May 1870
operator =
visitors =
status = Open all year

Stanley Park is a 45 hectare (approximately 111.19 acre) park in Liverpool, England, designed by Edward Kemp, which was opened on 14 May 1870 by Joseph Hubback (then Mayor of Liverpool). It is considered by some to be the most significant of Liverpool's parks because its layout and architectural significance. It features a grand terrace with expansive bedding schemes that were once highlighted by fountains and contains the 1899 Gladstone Conservatory, a Grade II Listed Building by Mackenzie & Moncur. Around 50 - 60% of the land consisted of open turfed areas, suitable for sport, with most of the rest being laid out as formal gardens and lakes. Kemp designed a horse-riding track ('Rotten Row'), though it didn't catch on, and was restyled as a cycle track around 1907.

Controversially some of the area of Stanley Park will be incorporated into the area of Liverpool Football Club's new stadium.

Stanley Park is famous for being the land between Merseyside Rival football clubs; Everton and Liverpool.

Liverpool FC are currently planning to move to a new stadium in Stanley Park.

The park has an Evangelical Church located on the corner in between the two football teams. It is named "Stanley Park Church" and is over 100 years old.

Like the NHL's Stanley Cup, and the 404.9 hectare (1,000 acre) Stanley Park, Vancouver in Canada, the park is named after Lord Stanley of Preston. It now also contains a new playpark consisting of a European record 45 adult swings and 2 child-safe swings.

ee also

Stanley Park, Blackpool, UK

Stanley Park, Vancouver, Canada

tanley Park in literature and film

Stanley Park featured in Alexei Sayle's short story The Last Woman Killed In The War from his short story collection Barcelona Plates. As a film location it party played a backdrop in Sayle's 1980's BBC documentary for the series Comic Roots. It also featured in Chris Shepherd's 2003 film Dad's Dead.

External links

* [http://worldstadia.com/ws/show-page.php?menuCommand=stadium&menuData=1369 Stanley Park Stadium] Description and Conceptual Images
* http://www.liverpoolpictorial.co.uk/stanleypark/
* [http://www.multimap.com/map/photo.cgi?client=public&X=336351&Y=393008&width=700&height=410&gride=&gridn=&srec=0&coordsys=gb&db=GB&pc=&zm=0&scale=10000&up.x=286&up.y=6 Aerial Photo]
* [http://www.catalystmedia.org.uk/issues/nerve9/stanley_park.php An article on the origins of football in the park from Liverpool's 'Nerve' magazine]