Yorkshire Sculpture Park
History
In 1720 Sir William Wentworth built the Palladian mansion that forms the centre of today's Bretton Hall. Sir William's son, Sir Thomas Wentworth, created a lot of the parks and gardens around his father's mansion, including having the River Dearne dammed and the lakes dug out. He is said to have been quite eccentric and often entertained guests on and around his lakes with firework displays, mock naval battles and plenty of alcohol. His daughter, Diana Beaumont, more than doubled the size of the mansion in the early 19th century and had many glass houses and conservatories built, including what became known as the 'Far Famed Dome Conservatory', considered to be the largest of its kind in the world.It was then used as a family home until the mid 20th century.
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