Radnor Gardens facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Radnor Gardens |
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| Type | Urban park |
| Location | Cross Deep, Strawberry Hill London Borough of Richmond upon Thames |
| Created | 1903 |
| Operated by | Richmond upon Thames Borough Council |
| Status | Open all year |
Radnor Gardens is a lovely public park right by the River Thames in Strawberry Hill, which is south of Twickenham in London. It's a great place to relax and play! The park has a special memorial from the First World War, a big grassy area, a place for bowling, and a fun children's playground.
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Where to Find Radnor Gardens
Radnor Gardens is about half a mile (0.8 km) south of Twickenham town centre. You can find it between the A310 road, called Cross Deep, and the Thames riverbank. It's one of the few places where people can easily walk to the river on the Middlesex side, between Twickenham and Kingston Bridge.
The Story of Radnor Gardens
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Radnor Gardens was created in 1903. It was made by the Twickenham Urban District by joining together several old properties along the river. These properties dated all the way back to the 1600s!
The park gets its name from Radnor House, which was in the middle of the area. The garden of Cross Deep House became the southern part, and the land from Cross Deep Hall made up the northern part.
You can still see parts of these old places in the gardens today. For example, there are walls from the base of Radnor House. There are also two cool gothic-style buildings: a gazebo and a polygonal summer house. This summer house is so special, it's even a Grade II listed building!
How the Gardens Were Built
After Radnor House was bought in 1902, a lot of gravel was used to raise the ground level. This gravel came from the building of Teddington Lock. It was used to protect an old island called Cross Deep Ait from flooding. This island was next to Swan Island and became part of the gardens.
On an old map from 1746 by John Rocque, these two islands looked like one big island. The small water channel that separated the island from the riverbank filled up with dirt in the late 1960s. If you look closely during dry weather, you can still see where the old channel used to be in the lawns. You might even spot metal pieces from old footbridges along the paths today!
Radnor House and the new gardens officially opened on April 11, 1903.
Fun Features Added Over Time
The bowling green was built in 1920. Since then, it has been the home of the Strawberry Hill Bowling Club. The Twickenham War Memorial, designed by Mortimer Brown, was put up in 1921. Even though it faces south, it was placed so that people at the Royal Star and Garter Home on Richmond Hill could see it clearly. The children's playground, a favorite spot for many, was built more recently in 2006.
How Radnor Gardens is Managed
The Richmond upon Thames Borough Council takes care of Radnor Gardens. The gardens are also part of the southern edge of the Twickenham conservation area, which means it's a special place that needs to be protected.
There's a local group called Friends of Radnor Gardens. They work with the council to help manage the park. They even helped create a plan for how to look after Radnor Gardens. The gardens have won the Green Flag Award every year since 2010, which shows they are a really well-managed and lovely green space!
