The land was donated by the Rev Charles Hesketh and has many Victorian features and landscape designs.

The Glasshouses are the green house development by where the floral displays for the park are grown, this is a private area which is not accessible to the public and is situated behind the Conservatory.

The Floral Clock is another feature of the park that has been restored, it is planted up with annual flowers each year in the formation of the Roman numerals and a decorative pattern.

Baxendell arrived in Southport in the late 1800s having retired from his post as Timekeeping astronomer for the City of Manchester.

He had been invited by John Fernley to come and manage the running of his recently opened Meteorological Observatory also sited in the Park.

After his death the Baxendell family offered the observatory and its equipment to the then Southport Corporation (Education Department) and was duly opened in September 1901 and a detailed description of the ceremony appeared on 5 September 1901 in the "Southport Visitor".

Activity became sparse during the war years and in the 1960s the Education Department handed management of the observatory to Southport College.

By 1980 the observatory fell into disuse mainly due to the encroachment of forest trees making observations difficult or impossible.

Although the dome metal runner was also renewed at this time it has not proved satisfactory and until this is put right the observatory cannot be used for observational work.

The 2017 refurbishment is now complete and the observatory is now almost ready for opening to the general public on suitable occasions.

The blind and disabled sensory garden was created in Hesketh Park in 1995 and its opening is commemorated by a plaque at its entranceway.

Hesketh Park is home to Southport Parkrun, a free 5 km timed event, which is open to all and fully staffed by volunteers.