Endcliffe Park
The park is owned by Sheffield City Council and is one of the most used facilities in the City, often hosting circuses and other events in the summer - most notably our Easter Duck Race every Easter Monday.
A playground was refurbished in 2008 by the Friends of Endcliffe Playground, and with a donation from the Friends of the Porter Valley includeded many attractions for children. In 2014 a parkour training facility, funded by the Sheffield Parkour Movement and a donation from the Friends of Porter Valley, was created.
The park features three monuments dedicated to Queen Victoria. Near the entrance is a statue of Queen Victoria and mid-way up the path towards Whiteley Woods is an obelisk also in honour of Queen Victoria. Both originally stood at the top of Fargate in Sheffield city centre. The third is an engraved boulder near the playground.
There is also a memorial stone marking the crash site of the USAAF B-17 Flying Fortress "Mi Amigo". On 22 February 1944 the aircraft was returning, heavily damaged by defending Me-109 fighters, from a bombing mission over Aalborg, Denmark. Around 5pm it crashed in the park with the loss of all 10 crew. An annual memorial service organised by the Royal Air Forces Association is held at the site on the Sunday closest to 22 February.
In 2019, a flypast was arranged to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the crash.
Early Days
Endcliffe Park, owned by Sheffield City Council, occupies approximately 38 acres of land situated 2 miles south-west of the city centre. The park is bisected by the Porter Brook with open space to the south and an area of ancient woodland to the north.
Land containing 3 water wheels was bought in 1885 from Francis Otter, a beneficiary of the will of Robert Young of Greystones Hall.
William Goldring, a landscape gardener, was commissioned to design and layout the land for public use with the condition that the dams should be incorporated into his plan, one for wildlife, one for ice-skating and one for public bathing.
The Extended Park
A further 9 acres of adjacent land was bought in 1887 to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria and incorporated into the park.
Since that time many new features have been added and this continues to be the case. The children’s play area was refreshed in 2008 and the Parkour training facility was installed in 2014, both with a donation from FoPV. Work mornings by FoPV volunteers ensure the park is well maintained and kept litter free.
The Refreshment Pavilion close to the Hunter’s Bar entrance to the park was opened in 1892. The original building included refreshment rooms, closets, urinals and rooms for a caretaker and a policeman and was made into a park keeper’s house in 1936.
Queen Victoria
The Jubilee Obelisk, just up the path from the café was commissioned in 1887 for Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee, and originally stood outside the Town Hall. It was moved to its current position in the park in 1904.
There is also a Jubilee Monument, across from the playground, which consists of natural rocks enclosed in a wrought-iron railing. The inscription on the top stone refers to the purchase of the additional land in 1887.
The Queen Victoria Statue, at the Hunter’s Bar entrance, was created after her death by Alfred Turner in 1904 and originally stood outside Sheffield Town Hall. It was transported to Endcliffe Park in 1930 to enable road improvements to take place.
The Cafe
The current café building opened in 1908 and replaced a temporary rustic structure which had been erected in 1890 and was dilapidated and beyond repair. The café opens daily and is a popular place for refreshments and meeting people.
On 30 November 1969, a memorial stone marking the crash site of the American B-17 Flying Fortress aircraft ‘Mi Amigo’ was unveiled in the wooded area behind the café.
The plane came down on February 22nd, 1944 with the loss of all ten crew members on board. Ten scarlet oak trees were also planted in 1969 to honour the crew.
