Explore Sheffield’s fascinating botanical gardens with beautiful Rose Garden and grade-II listed bear pit

The Sheffield Botanical and Horticultural Society was formed in 1833 to promote the well-being of the town’s residents.

Fundraising enabled 18 acres of land to be purchased in the valley of the River Porter and in 1834 Robert Marnock was appointed to design the botanical gardens and act as the first curator.

The botanical gardens opened in June 1836, with admission limited to shareholders and subscribers.

Development of the gardens continued, but their existence was threatened by frequent financial problems.

They were rescued by the Sheffield Town Trust, who acquired the site and in 1898 introduced free admission for all.

In 1951, the Town Trust leased the gardens to the city, which took on responsibility for general repairs and upkeep.

The economic problems of the 1980s led to a period of neglect.

1984 saw the creation of the Friends of the Botanical Gardens and, in 1996, the charitable Sheffield Botanical Gardens Trust was set up.

After a successful bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund, the gardens were returned to their former glory and officially re-opened in 2007.

Alison Hunter - historian from the Friends of the Botanical Gardens

Alison Hunter, historian from the Friends of the Botanical Gardens said: “You can go back almost 200 years to 1833. That was the year after the cholera epidemic hit Sheffield and also the year after Sheffield sent its first MPs to Parliament. A group of 85 wealthy gentlemen decided that Sheffield should have a botanical gardens. After all, Liverpool, Hull, Manchester and Birmingham have got them so why is Sheffield dragging its feet?

“They sent a petition to the Master Cutler who held a meeting and it was agreed that we would have botanical gardens and that meant that they had to rush around getting shareholders. They were selling shares at £20 each. Well that doesn't sound too much in today's money but if you move it, it's almost £2000. These were not that cheap and the benefits to the shareholders were not financial. They were the exclusive use of the gardens for six days a week, not Sundays.

“The Rose Garden has been on this particular site from the beginning. But we know that it was laid out in this very swirly Victorian pattern back in 1850s by the curator John Law at the time. Now it stayed that way for loads of years until the town council took over the management in 1951 where they dug it all up and they instituted a very rectangular Italianate pattern and planted a yew hedge all the way around it. Now that was okay, lots of people liked it, but unfortunately as the yew hedge got thicker and thicker it became a trap for all the fungal spores and also caused frost pockets and a lot of the roses died.

“When we did the restoration program, it was decided to reinstate the swirly Victorian pattern that we have today. The centre is marked by this lovely little statue of Pan: Spirit of the Wood.

“Bear pit [Grade II Listed] dates from the beginning of the garden. It wasn't there before. It was specifically requested by the committee of management and it was opened in 1836 and its first occupant was a black American bear and he was given a pole to climb up but he wasn't very exciting so some of the youngsters were a bit disappointed and within three years it decided that the roaring and stench was not appropriate for a botanical garden.

“After that it became a lumber storage area and a fern garden and then in 1856 Sir Henry Hunloke of Wingerworth Hall near Chesterfield he had a menagerie and he knew the curator and he presented two brown bears to the gardens so again we had bears and they had a pole to climb up.”