Brief Histories: Singleton Park
Singleton Park is more than just a green space. It’s the living, breathing heart of Sketty, offering both a peaceful retreat and a vibrant community hub. With over 250 acres of meadows, woodlands, ornamental gardens and historic buildings, it’s one of our most cherished landmarks. But beyond its present day beauty lies a rich, layered past that stretches back nearly two centuries.
The land we now know as Singleton Park began as a private estate owned by the Vivian family, one of Swansea’s most influential industrial dynasties. In 1817, John Henry Vivian, a successful entrepreneur and copper magnate, purchased a neoclassical villa named Marino, built in 1784 by Edward King. He developed it into a grand mansion known as Singleton Abbey, reshaping the surrounding landscape into a blend of ornamental gardens, exotic plantings and gently rolling parkland.
Later, in 1847, Vivian purchased another property nearby known as Veranda House for his son Henry and Henry’s wife, Jessie. Tragically, Jessie died in childbirth the following year, and Henry, devastated, vowed never to live in the house again. The once elegant Veranda House fell into disrepair and by 1853 only its lodge remained. Still, the family held on to the land, maintaining the estate and profiting from its network of farms. The walled gardens that once supported Veranda House became a productive kitchen and herb garden, supplying the family with many of life’s luxuries.
Jessie Vivian was commemorated with the construction of St Paul’s Church, which still stands within the park grounds today. Over time, the Vivians continued to shape the estate, planting rare trees, building charming follies like the alpine style Swiss Cottage and eventually owning a swathe of land that would one day be enjoyed by thousands.
In 1919, the Borough of Swansea purchased the Singleton estate from the Vivian family. The goal was simple: to give the growing town a proper public park. With Swansea’s urban population on the rise, the need for a recreational space was keenly felt, and the park quickly became a haven for locals seeking fresh air, beauty, and community.
The council appointed Daniel Bliss as the park’s first superintendent. Trained at London’s Kew Gardens, Bliss had a passion for horticulture and a vision for what the park could be. It was his idea to transform the old kitchen gardens into a centrepiece botanical garden, an idea that would shape the identity of Singleton Park for generations.
Under Bliss’s care, the botanical gardens flourished. Opened in 1926, they became a vibrant blend of colour and variety, boasting double herbaceous borders, exotic glasshouses, and even a Japanese bridge. The gardens are now home to one of Wales’ most impressive plant collections, with nearly 200 species in bloom throughout the year, from spring rhododendrons to the delicate blossoms that defy the winter cold.
The park’s wide open spaces were pressed into military use during both world wars. In World War I, local Volunteer Training Corps units held mock battles and drill exercises in the park; a contemporary report notes a 1915 “sham fight” involving 600–700 men. During World War II the park hosted British munitions research teams; a detachment of the Woolwich Arsenal’s Armaments Research Department and most notably, became a major U.S. Army camp. By spring 1944 over 1,500 American soldiers were billeted at Singleton Park to train for the D-Day landings on Normandy’s Omaha Beach. Known as Marshalling Area Camp X3, the base included engineer and logistics units preparing for the invasion. After D-Day the Americans withdrew, officially releasing the park site in September 1944.
Serving GI American soldier Sergeant Bernard Bellush wrote of his time in Sketty after the Three Night Blitz:
“…We were moved by truck on December 6th 1943, to Swansea, a much larger town. Our first glimpse of the worst-blitzed city in Britain was seen from the back of a covered GI truck, and it wasn’t a pleasant one. It seemed that the city had all but been levelled by Goering’s air fleet.
After we had settled on the fair campus grounds of Singleton University, just outside of Swansea, we visited the “destroyed” city. The double-decker tram took us towards Swansea port, from which point we walked by bomb-shattered churches to the centre of the city at High Street. Looking about us we saw, at first hand, the meaning of the word blitz.
The British people, as a whole, were sincere in their endeavours to make us feel at home. Many civilians warmly welcomed GI’s into their small apartments, offering them part of their own rationed foods. But we insisted – at first – on having “…only some tea, if you don’t mind,” as we had been advised by our officers.
Our days at Singleton were usually taken up with lectures presented by non-coms on every military subject… At least once every day we would be off on a hike on Clyne common… After chow most of the fellows disappeared into Swansea, in the direction of Mumbles, or up the hill to the movies at Sketty. There was always something doing somewhere…”
Over the years, Singleton Park has evolved into a place that welcomes everyone. It has hosted countless music events, including the BBC Proms in the Park, where renowned performers like Bryn Terfel have graced the open-air stage. More recently, concerts by Welsh rock icons like the Manic Street Preachers and Stereophonics have drawn thousands to the park’s natural amphitheatre.
Families flock to the boating lake, with its swan shaped pedalos offering gentle adventure for children. At its edge stands the well-known tavern affectionately known as the Pub on the Pond. Originally called The Inn on the Lake, locals preferred the more down to earth nickname, and the pub eventually adopted it officially. Today, it’s as much a part of the park’s fabric as the trees and footpaths.
The park’s charm lies in its mix of grand spaces and quiet corners. While there are wide open lawns where dogs run freely and families picnic under the sun, there are also hidden nooks where you can hear the rustle of squirrels or the trickle of a stream. In every season, the park has something to offer. Whether you’re admiring orchids in the greenhouses or reading a book beneath a chestnut tree, Singleton invites you to slow down and take it all in.
The walled botanical gardens at Singleton Park contain spring beds, glasshouses and formal terraces dating to the 1920s. In the center of the park lies the Singleton Botanical Gardens, a Victorian style garden first opened in 1926 as the “Educational Gardens” with collections of useful plants and native species. Today the Botanical Gardens are famous for their 40‑metre double herbaceous borders of perennials and annuals, tropical palm houses and orchid glasshouses, rockeries, herb beds and even a Japanese bridge. A modern addition in 2017 created a Wildflower/Wellbeing Garden amid the lawns. The Friends of the Botanical Gardens note that some of the plants growing today are probably descendants of specimens first planted in the 1920s. A visitor education center (“Ty Blodau”) was later built to support school and community programs. In summer the gardens burst into color, but even in winter, there is something to see throughout the year.
A “Swiss Cottage” folly in the woods of Singleton Park
Another eye catching survival of the estate era is the Swiss Cottage, a red painted Alpine chalet style lodge built in the 1870s. Designed by architect P. F. Robinson (who also built Singleton Abbey and Sketty Hall), this picturesque cottage was never meant for farming; instead it was a whimsical “folly” to adorn the landscape. In 2010 it was badly damaged by arson, but local volunteers and the council restored it to its former appearance. Not far from the cottage is the Boating Lake, a man made recreational lake in the park’s south-west corner. Established after the estate era, the boating lake offers pedalos (including swan-shaped boats) and a mini-golf course during the warmer months, beside a children’s play area and waterside café. Anglers also fish there seasonally (the lake is stocked with carp and tench)
The Gorsedd stone circle beneath the trees near Gower Road. This modern circle was erected for the 1925 National Eisteddfod held in Singleton Park and later enlarged in 1964. A notable cultural landmark is the Gorsedd Stones – a ring of standing stones set in a circle with a central platform. Installed for the National Eisteddfod of Wales when it met in Singleton Park in 1925, and enlarged for the 1964 Eisteddfod, the circle serves as the ceremonial seat of the Gorsedd of Bards (literary and cultural elders). Today it is still used in Welsh ceremonies and remains a reminder of the park’s place in Welsh cultural life.
