Gillespie Park

The beginnings

In 1850, Great Northern Railways finished a single track rail link from Kings Cross to York. Subsequently, goods lines were added and by 1878, the coal depot sidings were laid in the Highbury area. The area which is Gillespie Park now was a railway siding, exclusively used for sorting coal. In 1892, to the east of the sidings, H.C. ‘Inky’ Stevens opened an ink factory. Designed by his son, Michael, and built in the form of a Venetion palazzo, it produced ink, office utensils, carbon papers and gum - the raw materials being delivered by rail from London Docks. It was closed in the 1960’s and a council estate built on the site in 1972. The sidings ceased to be used when the factory closed. In 1980, the idea for a park on the area was put forward by interested local groups. There was a conflict between an environmental group, who wanted to keep the park closed and left to grow wild, and Islington Council and others, mainly Gillespie Road residents, who saw a closed park as a security risk. Hence, the buffer zone between their gardens and the park. Also at this time, Arsenal Football Club, whose stadium is across the road, wanted to acquire the land for car-parking use. By 1981, a ten year lease from British Rail was secured by the Recreational Services Department of Islington Council. The Council insisted that it be kept open. Landscape work was carried out over three acres of the site - mounding to create an undulating effect and the construction of a pond, although large areas of the park were left untouched and original vegetation left intact. There is an interesting contrast between the managed and unmanaged land. Planting of a variety of trees and shrubs and wildflower seeds followed. An area to the north was supplied with topsoil (the whole area was covered with coal dust, fire ash and broken brick) and given over to local people as allotments.

The campaign (1987-90)

Before the expiry of the ten year lease, there was pressure from central Government and the Department of the Environment under N. Ridley, to sell as much public land as possible to generate as much capital as possible. British Rail was pressurised to sell the land to the highest bidder. When the future of the park was in jeopardy, local people got together along with the support of the local councillor to form a pressure group to keep the park open. All the local political groups were invited to join the campaign in 1987 - the local branch of the Tory party were the only group who refused. The campaign committee consisted of 15 people. Regular meetings were held with the local community, although the people who ran the allotments were not involved with the campaign at the beginning. There was strong pressure from the Leader of Islington Council (Margaret Hodge) to favour the use of the park site for housing. Since the Council owned the entrance to the proposed development, in St Thomas's Road, this gave them weight to negotiate in support of the park.

The campaign received a lot of national and local publicity. British Rail agreed the sale of the freehold to the Council for use as parkland (the site being valued at approx. 8-10 million for the total ten acre site) on condition that agreement be reached on the siting of a building development providing homes on behalf of New Islington and Hackney, Islington and Shoreditch and Ujima Housing Associations. In return, half an acre was retained for allotment use and the park gained a two acre extension between the park and the railway line. Also, the builders would agree to fund the extension of a Parkland Walk which runs from Highgate to Finsbury Park to Gillespie Park. There is, however, some local opposition today, to the extension of Parkland Walk and there is a move to close the area of the walk near Finsbury Park which is causing some problems.