Camp Hill, with its panoramic views across the Mersey estuary, was the site of an Iron Age encampment. It is also reputed (without any evidence) to have been used by the Romans. In the 1820s a large house known as Woolton Wood was built on top of the hill, in what had been part of the grounds of Woolton Hall. From the 1870s onwards this was the home of Liverpool-born Holbrook Gaskell, a prominent chemical manufacturer with an alkali works (Gaskell, Deacon & Co.) in Widnes. The 1881 Census lists him at Woolton Wood, age 68, with his wife, daughter, son, 3 visitors and 9 servants. The Gaskell family were Unitarians, and the proximity of the house to Gateacre Chapel may have been a consideration.

Holbrook Gaskell was a keen orchid grower, his collection being described as "one of the finest in the north of England". After his death (age 96) in 1909 his head gardener, Henry Corlett, remained at Woolton Wood and further developed the walled garden, which also included a notable fernery. The estate - the mansion and its surrounding woods, gardens and other land - was acquired in 1917 by Col. James Reynolds, who in turn sold it to Liverpool Corporation for recreational use.