Grange Gardens, located in the Grangetown area of west Cardiff, is of natable historic interest as a small but well-preserved Victorian urban public park retaining much of its original layout. The park was restored in 2000 with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund. The park is triangular in form and covers an area of 1.25 hectares. It is bound on each side by residential streets.

Its low-lying location, on former salt marshes between the rivers Taff and Ely, meant the ground level had to be raised and reens were infilled with town refuse. The park was created on land donated by Lord Bute and Lord Windsor in 1892. This was the first of Cardiff’s public parks to have a bandstand, here standing in a central, circular area of the park, with straight radial footpaths leading from it towards each of the five entrances. The current bandstand is a copy manufactured by Saracen Castings from the original Lion Foundry design drawing. It was opened in 2000 as part of the HLF award to restore the gardens.

Other notable features include the 1920s war memorial, designed by sculptor H.C Fehr in the form of winged victory bearing laurel wreath and sword, and a Caretaker’s Shelter set just inside the Holmesdale Street entrance. It is contemporary with the original park layout, being erected in 1894.

An ornate cast-iron fountain canopy is located on the footpath that bisects the grassed area in the northeast of the park. The original was unveiled on 13th July 1909 and was dedicated to the memory of Louis Samuel. The Samuel family were local benefactors who had previously donated Macfarlane Foundry drinking fountains to the Corporation for Victoria Park (301658) and Splott Park (411742). The original fountain was removed in 1943 when the canopy was donated for the war effort. The current canopy is a copy based on early photographs and was installed in October 2000 as part of the HLF scheme. The modern replacement is decorative but early photographs show that the original had two splash bowls.
A rustic octagonal shelter of tree trunks and branches with a slate roof, stands outside the park boundary but is possibly contemporary with it. The shelter is a grade II listed structure (Cadw ref.19089). 

The wider west side of the park is given over to play and sports areas and includes a bowling green with pavilion. In 2020, a new community building, Grange Pavilion, was built around the bowling green area.

Source:
Cadw Historic Park & Gardens database (ref: PGW(Gm)72(CDF)).

RCAHMW, 6 July 2022