History
Mowbray Park is one of the oldest municipal parks in North East England.
The roots of Mowbray Park date back to the 1830s, when a health inspector recommended building a leafy area in the town after Sunderland recorded the first cholera epidemic in 1831. A grant of £750 was provided by the Government to buy a £2,000 plot of land from the Mowbray family for a new park.
Work on Mowbray Park – then known as The People's Park – began in the mid-1850s, incorporating a former limestone quarry set within what was known as Building Hill. It appears that spoil heaps were shaped and mounded to create distinctive paths amongst steep sided hummocks. The effect was to afford the Victorian user plenty of opportunity to perambulate within a relatively small green area.
The park was opened by John Candlish, Lord Mayor MP of Sunderland on 21 May 1857.
On the day of the park's opening on May 12, 1857, shops closed early as thousands of people flocked to attend the ceremony. An extension to Mowbray Park, from the railway cutting to Borough Road, was opened on July 11, 1866.
It was opened in 1857 in response to a demand for more open spaces in the town. The land was purchased from the Mowbray family, and named after them in recognition. The park was extended in 1866 to include a lake and a terrace, and in 1879 the Winter Gardens, museum and art gallery were added along the Borough Road side.
The Second World War had an impact on the park. It was hit with numerous German bombs, the iron structures - most notably the Winter Gardens, a cast iron bridge, and the bandstand - were taken away to be melted down for weapons, and the open spaces were converted into vegetable patches.
Following the war, the park fell into neglect. The civic centre was built on the west portion of the park. The area became known for anti-social and absuive behaviour, and was considered generally unsafe. In August 1993, over £13,000 worth of damage was caused, and a survey by the Sunderland Echo showed that locals were too scared to use the park.
Following a public campaign, in 1994 work began on restoring the park to its Victorian glory, funded by a £3.3 million grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, described as: "The jewel in the crown of the city centre regeneration". The Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens were rebuilt, the lake was restored, the bandstand was rebuilt, and the park was re-shaped and adorned with new artworks. A large adventure play area for children was built, to an "Alice Through The Looking Glass Theme" featuring a distorted giant chequer board and giant chess pieces. The park officially re-opened in 2000.
In the first year following re-opening, the park received over 800,000 visitors, making it the most visited attraction outside of London.
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