During the Second World War, the reservoir was brought back into use to as water storage against bombing. Its use as a water source had long since been passed to much larger reservoirs further up the valley. A use was found for the reservoir as a container for rubble from the redevelopment of Swansea during the 1950’s and the bottom of the park was grassed over, becoming the children’s play area and large green space it remains to till today.
The other most noticeable changes were the creation of the Dylan Thomas Memorial Gardens in the early 1970’s. Although its name has since changed, you can still see the memorial stone which was the centre of a pretty garden at the centre of the park. At much the same time, public subscription raised money for a memorial shelter to the poet, standing at the top of the old path that ran round the the reservoir.
Although the planting in the park is a shadow of its Edwardian heyday, you can still catch glimpses of the shape and design of the park as it was set out in its first days, and turning a corner, it’s still possible to imagine yourself as much in the past as in the present.