Tuesday, 23 July, 2002 17:39
Park Life |
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| Relaxing
in Watts Park. |
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Whether
you need to unwind with friends in a shady spot or you fancy doing
something sporty in the sunshine, Southampton's Central Parks offer
something for everyone. |
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Covering
around 21 hectares the five main parks (East Park, West Park, Palmerston
Park, Houndwell Park and Hoglands Park) can all be found from Above
Bar Street.
The leafy Parks were originally areas of land which people rented
to grow their crops in the summer but were open for general grazing
during the rest of the year. They were laid out as parks in the 1800's.
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| The Queen's
Peace Fountain |
The parks
have a system of avenues running through them and are home to a number
of historical monuments.
Watts Park includes a statue of the famous Composer of Hymns Isaac
Watts who was born in the city in 1674.
Every four hours during the day the bells of the Civic Centre Clock
ring out Isaac Watts' hymn, 'Oh God, Our help in ages past'.
In East Park you'll find the Titanic Engineers Memorial, the Andrew's
Memorial he was a coach builder and Mayor five times and the Queen's
Peace fountain, Palmerston Park has a statue of Lord Palmerston, Foreign
Secretary and Prime Minister.
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| The Andrew's
Memorial |
East Park has a range of sports facilities for sunny days you can
tee off on the putting green, have a leisurely game of Petanque or
show off your back hand on the grass or hard tennis courts.
Hoglands Park has a cricket pitch and over the road at Houndwell Park
you'll find a large children's play area.
If you need to get poolside, Southampton's paddling pool on the Common
is a popular spot. The pool is made up of three interlinked pools
with water features. It's open between 10am and 6pm and during the
school holidays between 10am - 8pm.
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