In 1903 Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Newman Kidd offered five acres of land to be developed by the town into recreational grounds with the condition that it be used 'in perpetuity as a public recreation ground and for no other purpose whatsoever'. Dartford Council consequently opened the area as 'Central Recreational Ground' to the public in June 1905. Ceremonially, there was a procession from outside the council offices to the park entrance at Lowfield street and Kidd was presented with a silver key to unlock the gates. Dartford Volunteer Silver Band performed on the original bandstand in celebration.
In 1910 the park grew when Bank House on the high street was converted into council offices. A large part of its garden was added to the park. In 1915 the council expanded the grounds further purchasing 16 acres of meadows bordering the river Darent. It opened to the public in May 1916 but closed shortly after due to a lack of staff reopening on 1921 with a lake added. In 1927 it was closed again during which time the ground was levelled and new grass sown from seed. Finally in May 1931 it opened permanently.
The war memorial at the main entrance to the park was unveiled in May 1922. In 1933 the Dartford Harriers began using the park whereupon the council agreed to mark out a grass track at the southern end. In 1937 a bowling green and children's paddling pool were created. The paddling pool was used until 1970 and later replaced by one nearer to the library. In 1979 it was no longer considered safe so was demolished.
An annual fundraising carnival at the park began from 1936 in aid of the Livingstone Cottage Hospital this went on to become the Dartford Festival as we know its now.
In April 1984 the South African born athlete Zola Budd ran her first competitive race in the UK on the cinder path athletics track at Central Park setting the woman's track record of 9 minutes and 2.6 seconds in the 3000m.
Nowadays the park boasts a skate park, children's water play area, playground, cafe, outdoor fitness area, bandstand and ornamental gardens. The Henry Wellcome Bandstand bears the symbolic unicorn trademark of Burroughs Wellcome (used as their logo from 1908 to 1955). This is a salute to the town's pharmaceutical past. The bandstand was opened on 20th June 2010. Normally over the Summer the council host a range of music events including the Dartford Festival in July.
Near to the tunnel leading to Brooklands Lake is a tribute statue to Mick Jagger striking his iconic pose with a Vox amplifier and four small Dartford Warblers. All three are emblematic of the town. It was designed by Ben Pimenta who was a pupil at Dartford Grammar.
The River Darent at Central Park is currently part of a restoration project between the South East Rivers Trust, the Environment Agency and Dartford Borough Council. This will hopefully have a positive impact by increasing the area's wildlife diversity for the future.
Bluewater is an out of town shopping centre located in Greenhithe just outside of Dartford. In May 1996 building of the Shopping Centre began at the site of a former chalk quarry. Tunnels were excavated under Bean Road to join the Eastern and Western Quarries allowing sand to be transported to the site. Its lakes were partially drained in preparation for construction of the basement levels and the cliffs were remodelled to permit vehicular access to the site. It is built across 20 hectares of lakes and parkland. Bluewater opened on 16th March 1999. The layout is a triangular design with a flagship store at each corner; Marks&Spencer, John Lewis and House of Fraser. This layout is considered easier for navigation. To reflect the surrounding lakes swathes of glass are incorporated into the architecture. The ventilation system is based on the traditional oast house with fresh air brought through rotating aluminium vents on th...
Electricity was historically generated at Littlebrook since 1939 when the first Power Station at the site was constructed. Littlebrook 'A' and B were coal powered. Although C was at first coal powered it was later converted to burn oil fuel from 1958. Littlebrook ‘D’ began generating electricity in 1981, and was the fourth power station to be built at the location. After storm force winds in October 1987 Littlebrook D had a significant role in restoring power to the South East of England due to its back-start capabilities i.e. it did not require an external source of power. Littlebrook Power Station closed in 2015 as it was believed unprofitable to bring it up to necessary environmental standards and subsequently demolished by explosion on Friday 30 August 2019. Source: Wikipedia- Littlebrook Power Station Powerstations UK
Dartford Creek is one of the last remaining natural tidal creeks in London. It was built in 1981 to minimise flood risk from the Thames Estuary to Crayford and Dartford. There are two gates that travel vertically and are driven by a chain system. The gates are balanced by two water-filled counterweights. When they close, the barrier is able to withstand up to 7 metres of water above average sea level. Most of the time the gates are raised but when flooding is predicted by the Met Office both are closed. Raised embankments along the lower reaches of the Thames estuary also act as flood defences. Before the barrier was built Dartford flooded significantly in 1953 and 1968. In the face of global warming should we be worried about Dartford flooding once more? There is certainly a lot of new housing on floodplain and reclaimed marshland. Take a look at this map and judge for yourself. It shows the land projected to be below annual flood level in 2030. Clim...
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