Pool Park country house (nprn 27812) is located about 4km to the south-west of Ruthin on a multi-period site with origins in the medieval period, and was the seat of two important families: the Salesburys and, later, the Bagots. It is noted for its fine landscape park, its unusual garden terraced mound (266369), and its well-preserved kitchen garden (700110). The park was the site of a Second World War prisoner-of-war camp (404009).

The park is linear in extent, aligned north-east by south-west, the house located towards the south-west end. The house was originally approached by four drives, each with a lodge. The main one from the north-east end ran southwards from Pine Lodge at the entrance on the Ruthin-Corwen road. The other drives approach from the north (at Bingley Lodge), from the south-west (at Pen-y-maes Lodge) and from the east (at The Lodge, the main lodge); only the latter drive remains in use. The park is mostly rolling pasture and lies to the north and south of the house on ground rising to the west and north to a ridge running north-eastwards towards Ruthin. The highest ground is on the west boundary of the park, along the Ruthin-Clocaenog road. The ground is characterised by a number of rocky hillocks, some of which have been quarried, leaving uneven depressions. Trees are mostly deciduous and scattered, some are ancient, with clumps of mostly oak. South of the house, the park is largely open pasture, falling gently down from the east and west to the stream that runs north-eastwards through the east side of the park. Here it is canalised into a channel, dropping into a small ravine north of the east drive as it enters the garden area. North of the house a large, roughly rectangular pond, partly fringed with trees possibly has ancient origins and may be the source of the park’s name. Another pond lies in pasture that was formerly woodland just to the south of the park, to the west of the kitchen garden.

Much of the woodland that once fringed the park has gone or been depleted. Coed Efail-y-phidyllon, on the east side, is the most extensive, now managed commercially. A linear earthwork running north-west/south-east down the slope to the drive next to the kitchen garden wall, is possibly a former wood bank, perhaps the boundary of a medieval deer park. Derelict brick buildings on the east side of the park, to the north end, are the remains of  prisoner-of-war camp.

Gardens lie around the house, the kitchen garden to its west.

Sources:
Cadw Historic Assets Database (ref: PGW(C)76 (DEN)).
Infoterra (Google Maps) imagery (accessed 31.08.2021).

RCAHMW, 25 April 2022