St John's Park is a historically significant residential area centred around a mid-19th century parkland in the eastern part of Ryde, part of the Ryde, St John’s Conservation Area. It is noted as a fine example of 19th-century residential planning on a grand scale.
This website is not connected to the park owners, but maintained by supportive local residents.
This area of land appears on the 1793 map as a series of semiregular small fields and not as ancient woodland as its current layout may suggest. In the early 19th century the land was acquired by the Simeon family and became part of the St John’s estate. Parts of this estate were being leased in the 1830s and the area began to be developed in the 1850s. Development was facilitated by the laying out of East Hill Road and the pressing need for Ryde’s outward expansion, a demand for building land probably elevating local land prices.
The design for St John’s Park was by Thomas Hellyer, although none of the houses are known to be directly by him. The choice of the irregular tear-drop shape may have been determined by geography rather than aesthetic design and the overall concept (substantial villas on substantial plots) may have been inspired by a similar scheme at East Cowes. Surviving draft leases show that the position of the houses and the terms to be observed by each tenant were strictly controlled by Simeon’s Surveyors. To preserve the seclusion of the park itself, houses were kept at least 80 ft (24 m) from the inner boundary. Since there was no single developer the style of the houses varied but all had to be at least £600 in value when built – most were actually more than this. One of the builders believed to be involved was John Harbour of Ryde who had a brickyard at Binstead. Again, as elsewhere, the houses were built in a mainly Italianate style, the pervading style of the period through the influence of Osborne House (and, again, as elsewhere, Osborne towers appear in various forms).
The main park entrance, located near the Strand, was an imposing structure featuring nine massive Caen stone pillars, the central one richly carved with the Simeon arms. The pillars were connected by elegant iron palisades and gates. There was also a minor entrance from St. John’s Road. The plans for these structures were by Mr. Hellyer, and the carving was executed by Mr. Baker, an eminent sculptor.
St John’s Park was described in the Isle of Wight Observer of 17th January 1857 as a “great addition to the environs of Ryde… Evergreens and flowering shrubs are thriving most luxuriously. Several sites are taken on building leases and villas are in the course of being erected.” (HRS) An interesting footnote is that the hoard of 12 palstaves (a Bronze Age axe) mentioned on page 3 were discovered in 1858 when digging the foundations for Leavington House: these were donated by Sir John Simeon to the Isle of Wight Philosophical Society.
By 1868 most sites around the park had been filled and this fashionable new suburb was virtually complete. There were gaps in the development, most notably at the northern area of West Hill Road: it is not quite clear why this is the case but it may have been due to the fact that this area is subject to flooding. The houses facing east on East Hill Road would have looked over countryside; the houses on West Hill Road are facing over Ryde. However, the stunning views across Ryde were available to both sides as the houses on West Hill Road are set slightly lower.
The status of the area is confirmed by an examination of Kelly’s Directory of 1891: the addresses are littered with Majors and Captains, Major-Generals and Colonels, Generals, Lieutenants, Lieutenant-Generals, Surgeon-Generals, Commanders, a couple of Knights of the Realm and a Lady or two. These keyholders had access to the inner park through private gates: on the 1860s and 1890s OS Maps the park is laid out with a fountain, flower beds, specimen trees and meandering pathways; later two tennis courts were added (and possibly even a bandstand). There were two entry gates to the park on East Hill Road: the piers of these still remain together with sections of wall.
Over the years some of the original houses have been lost, others have been converted into flats, and some expanded by the addition of extensions on a massive scale infilling the land between the houses. However, the original shape of the park and boundaries, including in some places characteristic iron railings, are still visible even though the inner park is now completely overgrown with trees. Although originally landscaped parkland, the area is currently dominated by self-seeded trees. This wooded open space still has an overwhelmingly positive impact on the area's spacious character. In most cases the 80 ft (24 m) space between the properties and the inner park boundary is still respected, except in one or two cases of extreme redevelopment. The parkland is now owned by a group of individuals, mostly locals, who bought the site in the 1990s to prevent development. Public access is permitted throughout the site and many surrounding properties still have private gates onto the park.
The parkland of St John’s Park is included on the Local List of Buildings, Structures, Parks and Gardens of Architectural and Historic Importance, having been listed in June 2008, recognizing the significant contribution it makes to the area's character. There are no Listed Buildings (Grade II or higher) within the St John’s Park Character Area, but many of the individual villas are considered notable, with some being mentioned in Pevsner, such as Argosy, Vista Marina, Victoria (or Victorian) Lodge, and New Lodge.