For my next sketch I didn't need to move my time machine of the imagination far in space, only a few miles to the south east. As for time, I pushed the reset button to 1890.
In 1851 the Crystal Palace was erected in Hyde Park as the home for the Great Exhibition. It was designed by Joseph Paxton, the head gardener of the Duke of Devonshire's Chatsworth so that no tree would have to be cut down, and it could be built in a very short space of time. You can see that the design owes more than a little to great Victorian palm houses.
The Great Exhibition was a resounding success. The story goes that the building was christened the Crystal Palace by Douglas Jerrold of Punch magazine, and that the nickname stuck. I have to admit that the temptation was to take the time machine back to the opening day in Hyde Park, but no.
When the six months of the Exhibition were over, the cast iron and glass building was taken down. It was bought by a consortium of businessmen, including 2 directors of the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway, and re-erected in Sydenham, and this is where I'd love to have seen it.
It has to be said that the Palace was not a great success when it opened in Sydenham in 1854. The Park was closed to visitors on a Sunday, yet this was the only day that working people would have time to visit. This was rectified in 1860, and over the next five decades the Palace hosted many shows and exhibitions. I was interested to read that at one stage it held a circus, where Ealing resident and famous tightrope walker Charles Blondin performed. After the first world war, the Palace also became the first home of the Imperial War Museum.
Ironically, under the watchful eye of Sir Henry Buckland, the Palace was carefully renovated during the 1920s and started making profit again. I'm sure that my Nan said she visited it once.
The building burned down in November 1936, and this being the Great Depression there was no chance of it being rebuilt. Crystal Palace Park is still well worth a visit. You can clearly see where the Palace stood, and its well worth a look since when you see the building's footprint you get an idea of just how massive it was, and how impressive it would have been. I first took a visit when I was under 10, when my parents took me and my two brothers to see the dinosaurs in the park. We used red bus rover tickets - remember them? Didn't think so. As I recall the journey lasted about 3 weeks. Well, here's the sketch. The water tower on the far left was not part of the original palace, and was built by Isambard Kingdom Brunel - there was another on the other side too.
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