class lifestyle, and Emily remained with Mr Best until his death in 1921. Alice married John Shaw, a local doctor, and they lived in Haden Hall for a while after the death of Mary Barrs. When Haden-Best died in 1921, the estate passed to his nephews, the children of his sister Emiline (1836–1892) who had married an Italian Evangelical Protestant businessman called Walter Bassano (died 1903). Like Haden-Best, Bassano was a benefactor of the local community, and was largely responsible for financing the building of Holy Trinity Church, Old Hill in the 1870s. Bassano sons, Haden-Best's nephews, Alfred and Charles disposed of much of the estate, meaning that George Haden-Best was to be the only owner-occupier Haden Hill House ever had, as well as being the only person to carry the Haden-Best surname. 1922 to date: public ownership The estate was put up for public sale by the Bassano brothers. Following a public subscription, of parkland, Haden Hill House and Haden Hall were bought for £8,500 for the use of the local community. From the proceeds of the subscription, the council also bought some adjacent land to incorporate into the park: to the east, Temple Meadow and to the south west, the nine acre field. The title deeds were handed to Rowley Regis Urban District Council on 14 October 1922, and the park was opened one week later. A bandstand was donated by prominent local residents and was erected in time for the opening ceremony. In 1926, an outdoor swimming pool was built behind the houses and survived for forty years. When acquired, the Hall was in a poor state of repair; a restoration programme was begun in 1930 with the result that the Hall was able to open as tea rooms in 1937 and also hosted wedding receptions. During World War II, part of the Hall was used as a refuge for evacuees. In the years following World War II, maintenance of the Park ceased to be a civic priority and, by 1970, Haden Hill House was in a poor state of repair and Haden Hall had returned to a state of dereliction. In 1977 a major improvement programme was instigated; extensive restoration to Haden Hill House was carried out, but attempts to renovate the Hall were undermined by a major fire which left the property on the verge of collapse. The council were unable to finance repairs to