|
Historical
Overview.
A Brief History of the Hanbury Family.
The Hanbury
Family who owned Pontypool
Park and much of the
surrounding area were local Iron Masters,
They are well known for their philanthropy throughout the county
providing much employment for the local people. Sir Richard, in his book The Hanburys of Monmouthshire points out that the American Gardens were created to provide work
at a time of depression.
The “American
Gardens” are adjacent to Pontypool Park, with “The Folly” and “The
Grotto” nearby. The Gardens are the
property of Pontypool Park Estates.
The Gardens were created around the 1850`s
and at that time were known as the American Grounds but prior to that they
were called The Coppice Fawr and must have been a
beautiful sight in their day.
Unfortunately, the gardens have received little maintenance since the
1950’s. They are now in a sad state of
repair, and of natural “herbage invasion”.
In the early 1800s Capel Hanbury Leigh, occupied
much of his time adding to and improving his house and grounds in the park. Capel’s wife Molly, a wealthy widow from the Knoll near Neath, is credited with inspiring many of these
improvements including the  spectacular shell decoration inside the Grotto.
The Grotto near the American Gardens
was used by the Hanbury Family as a venue for
picnics on nearby shoots until the early 20th Century. One event of note
occurred around 1882 when the Prince of Wales (later Edward VII), was a member of a shooting party
picnicking by the Grotto.
|
