The Beginning
 

Windsor Castle Park became a reality as the result of the visionary skills and dreams of Joseph W. Luter lll, founder and former CEO of Smithfield Foods. The nature of his business required a considerable amount of travel across the country and he had seen way too many cities and towns consumed by development and urban sprawl. He lived in New York City several years and came to appreciate Central Park, so naturally part of the Manhattan environment that many people may not realize it is entirely man made. It is considered one of the urban wonders of the world; a green oasis in the great concrete, high-rise landscape of New York City.

It was the opportunities, lost forever, of far too many communities to set aside land for recreational use that led him to consider purchasing Windsor Castle property for park development. In March 2009 he donated the staggering sum of five million dollars ($5,000,000) to the Town of Smithfield to acquire two hundred eight acres of land nestled in the heart of Smithfield known as Windsor Castle for just such a purpose. During the construction process he realized the true gem that was in the making and contributed an additional two million, two hundred thousand dollars ($2,200,000) for a grand total of seven million two hundred thousand dollars  ($7,200,000) towards the parks development.

Construction of the park actually began on March 23, 2008 and was completed in the record time of just over one year. The park was dedicated in a ceremony on May 22, 2010 with congratulatory remarks by Governor Robert McDonnell.

Windsor Castle was the home of Arthur Smith, the founder of Smithfield in 1752.  In her book, "Historical Notes On Isle of Wight County, Virginia", Mrs. Helen Haverty King writes, “It is not known when Windsor Castle was built. The generally accepted date is somewhere around the middle of the eighteenth century”. It is also unknown how the name Windsor Castle became attached to this property.