Janet Elleker and her mother Helen have so many memories and photos to share with us from the time they lived at Temple Newsam that they have a page of their own! Here they are.
A poem by Joan Swaby
TREADING TEMPLENEWSAM FOR 75 YEARS
This beautiful park has been part of my life story
Walking through the seasons, seeing its full glory
Winter closes and crocuses array in yellow, purple and white
A carpet full of colour, awakening the springtime, so bright.
Azaleas and rhododendrons bring the park ablaze,
Walking down the floral avenues, a sight to amaze.
Enter the woodland to savour the ground covered in blue,
Bells upon bells blowing in the breeze, of wondrous hue.
Over the lake, an aged willow tree spreads its branches into the deep,
Giving shade to the ducks, swans and moorhens in there stillness and sleep.
A farm full of animals gives hours of joy to both parent and child,
Giving freedom to the countryside, adventure into the wild.
Rain, snow or sunshine , the Park offers a day filled with pleasure,
Historical house to wander through, floral beauty, so much to treasure.
So many collective memories and happiness I hold so dear
Of the adventures it has given me year after year.
Memories from Pam Jukes
I have known Temple Newsam all my life. My earliest memories are of walking there with Mum, Dad and my sister and brother. We loved the open spaces, running around while Mum and Dad sat and relaxed. We would take a picnic sometimes. Later in life I would take my children and walk through the woods or visit the farm and now I take my grandchildren who love it too, especially the pig called Pam!
“I have been a very regular visitor to Temple Newsam Park over 85 Years. Remembering the park keepers, wonderful greenhouse displays, closed due to Covid at the moment and sorely missed.
Opera in the Park, camping over the weekend with scouts, excellent cafe, fantastic rose displays in season, sailing my yacht on the Lawn pond, now a car park, riding the miniature railway in North Plantation, picnics at the ice house and watching the opencasting with the huge excavator.”
John Gilleghan
I have always had a love of Temple Newsam Park. I grew up in Woodhouse and it was a million miles (or seemed) away. How lucky when I got married and moved to East Leeds and later moved into the area. It is a short walk for me and I just love going there – especially in the present climate. It is somewhere that for me will always remain unspoilt and untouched particularly by this dreadful Covid.
Temple Newsam is a place where the present and the past intersect, it is a place of change and stability, of energy and calm.
The wild and the intricately maintained are wound around each other, open vistas and enclosed courtyards thread through the trees and foliage, sun light dappled paths and the gentle sound of farm animals content in their historic environs.
Skies change and cascade colour over the bricks and stones, the bygone visible and tangible in the cries of birds and laughter of huddled crowds.
History in every turn and view, rain cascading over cobbles and wind ringing in barns and eaves.
Bright mornings of summer and crisp autumnal afternoons, spring breezes and winter frosts painting a variety of hues among the trees.
Nick Monaghan