Tag: Tunstall Memorial Gardens

Another Busy Week is Nearly Over

Another busy week is coming to an end.

During the week, we began learning how to use our new portable photocopier. This will allow us to visit people at home to copy their treasured photographs from bygone days.

A new series of posts tracing Tunstall’s history and architectural heritage will start in the autumn. The series is based on images in the film strip The Township of Tunstall, made by Highgate School in 1960. Posts in the series will trace the history of Tunstall from Anglo-Saxon times to the 21st century. These posts will introduce you to Tunstall’s heritage buildings. They will tell you about its unique Victorian Civic Centre, which includes the former Town Hall, Tower Square, Market Hall, the Jubilee Buildings, Tunstall Pool, the Drill Hall and the Memorial Gardens.

Have a relaxing and enjoyable weekend. Take care, and we’ll see you again on Monday.

Tunstall Memorial Gardens

An Open Letter From Lee Wanger (10 November 2024)
The Pavilion in the Memorial Gardens

I want to draw your attention to the plight of Tunstall’s Memorial Gardens in The Boulevard.

If you haven’t visited the gardens recently, please go and see for yourself how they have been neglected.

While nearly every town has a war memorial, Tunstall’s Memorial Gardens are unique. They are a heritage asset we should be proud of. The gardens are the focal point of a Conservation Area and home to our cenotaph.

My attempts to get Stoke-on-Trent City Council to look after the gardens failed. I consulted heritage lawyers and asked them if there was anything else I could do. They told me my only choice was to shame the council into action. Will you add your voice to mine? Can we work together and ask the council to restore our Memorial Gardens before it is too late?

The pavilion shown in the image has been left to rot. Fires and graffiti have damaged the murals, bricks have been knocked out of the walls and the guttering is collapsing.

The ornate entrance gates and fencing in The Boulevard are rotting away. Finials are missing from the tops of pillars, and the fencing is rusting and disintegrating.

For a long time, I have been asking the council to restore the gardens to their former glory. My requests have been ignored. Now, I need your help. Please write to the City Council, your local Councillor, and your Member of Parliament. Tell them about the plight of the Memorial Gardens. These gardens are of great historical significance. Ask them to stop the neglect and save the gardens.

Many thanks for reading my letter. Best wishes, Lee Wanger