Grosvenor Park, Chester

Grosvenor Park is a public park in the city of Chester, Cheshire, England (grid reference SJ412663). It consists of 20 acres (8.1 ha) of land overlooking the River Dee. It is regarded as one of the finest and most complete examples of Victorian parks in the North West of England, if not nationally. On 22 August 2013 the designation of the park was raised from Grade II in the National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens to Grade II*.

The land, which formerly consisted of fields, was given to the city by Richard Grosvenor, 2nd Marquess of Westminster. The Marquess also paid for the design of the park by Edward Kemp. It was laid out in 1865–66 and opened with great celebration in November 1867 although the Marquess was not able to attend.

This was originally the park keeper's lodge and is now the city council's parks & gardens office. It was designed by local architect John Douglas. The lodge, together with some of the other structures in the park, are among his first recorded commissions by the Grosvenor family, and the first known example of his use of black-and-white architecture. The lodge is in two storeys, the lower storey being built in red sandstone and the upper storey being timber-framed with plaster panels. The roofs are of red-brown tiles. On the upper storey are eight carvings which represent William the Conqueror and the seven Norman Earls of Chester. The lodge has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II listed building.

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