Welford Park

Welford Park is a country house and estate in the village of Welford, near the town of Newbury in the English county of Berkshire. Whilst of some historical significance, the estate is perhaps best known for its displays of Snowdrops in early Spring.

The church of Welford St Gregory, one of only two existing round-tower churches in Berkshire, is located adjacent to the house. The various chalk streams that make up the River Lambourn flow through the grounds.

History

Welford Park is built on the site of a monastic grange that belonged to Abingdon Abbey from Anglo-Saxon times. After the dissolution of the monasteries, King Henry VIII used the site for a hunting lodge. Later it was granted to Sir Thomas Parry, Comptroller of the Household to Queen Elizabeth I. His main residence was at Hamstead Marshall but, after his death in 1560, Welford was used as a dower house for his wife, who is buried in the adjoining church.cite web | url = http://www.berkshirehistory.com/castles/welford_park.html | title = Berkshire History - Welford Park | publisher = David Nash Ford | accessdate = February 5 | accessyear = 2007]

The existing house dates from about 1652 and was built for Richard Jones, the grandson of Sir Francis Jones, Lord Mayor of London in 1620, who had purchased the property in 1618. The house was remodelled by the architect Thomas Archer about 1700, which resulted in an additional storey and a facade decorated with ionic columns. The interior was again altered in 1840.cite web | url = http://www.berkshirehistory.com/castles/welford_park.html | title = Berkshire History - Welford Park | publisher = David Nash Ford | accessdate = February 5 | accessyear = 2007]

The house remains in the ownership of James Puxley, a local landowner and former High Sheriff of Berkshire, who is a distant relative of the Jones family.cite web | url = http://www.berkshirehistory.com/castles/welford_park.html | title = Berkshire History - Welford Park | publisher = David Nash Ford | accessdate = February 5 | accessyear = 2007]

Snowdrops

Welford Park is a private residence, and for most of the year neither it nor its grounds are open to the public. However in a tradition that is now over 50 years old, the grounds are opened to enable visitors to view the year's bloom of Snowdrops and, to a lesser extent, Aconites. The flowers thrive on the chalky soil, forming a white carpet across the estate's riverside beech woodland.cite web | title = Welford Park Snowdrop Opening | url = http://www.rhs.org.uk/rhseventfinder/EventFinder2.asp?ID=5009924 | publisher = Royal Horticultural Society | accessdate = February 5 | accessyear = 2007] cite web | title = Snowdrops welcome Spring at Welford Park | url = http://www.newburytoday.co.uk/News/Article.aspx?articleID=1653 | publisher = Newbury Weekly News | accessdate = February 5 | accessyear = 2007]

The actual dates of opening vary from year to year, depending on the state of the blooms. In recent years, the park has been opened on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays throughout the month of February. As one of the first signs of the end of winter, Welford's snowdrops are generally well covered by the local, and sometimes national, press, and attract large crowds of visitors. The nearby site of Welford Park station on the former Lambourn Valley Railway is used as a car park for these visitors.cite web | title = Snowdrops welcome Spring at Welford Park | url = http://www.newburytoday.co.uk/News/Article.aspx?articleID=1653 | publisher = Newbury Weekly News | accessdate = February 5 | accessyear = 2007]

References

External links

* [http://www.welfordpark.co.uk/ Welford Park's own web site] , with information on the snowdrop openings.