Bathpool Park is a public park situated in a rural area in Staffordshire

Staffordshire

Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...

 near the border with Cheshire

Cheshire

Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...

. The nearest town to the park is Kidsgrove

Kidsgrove

Kidsgrove is a town in the borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England, near the border with Cheshire. It forms part of The Potteries Urban Area in North Staffordshire, along with Stoke-on-Trent and Newcastle-under-Lyme. It has a population of 24,112...

. The park became notorious in 1975 as the location for the murder of the kidnapped Shropshire heiress Lesley Whittle. Her body was found hanging from a steel wire at the bottom of a shaft in the park.

She fell or was pushed by a killer known as the Black Panther-Donald Neilson

Donald Neilson

Donald Neilson is a British multiple murderer and armed robber...

. He is currently serving life for her and four other murders.

The park is owned and managed by Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council.