Folly Fair

Folly Fair

From Memorials of Liverpool....second edition, revised, with additions.

The origin of this merrymaking was something as follows:- A short distance up what is now called Islington, but then simply the road to West Derby, very near the site of the present Christian Street, a house of entertainmentand strawberry or tea-garden was kept about the middle of the last century by Mr. Gibson, who was also the lessee and manager of the Theatre Royal. Here he erected a square tower, eight storeys in height (1. Aview of this will be found in Herdman's Ancient Liverpool, vol.1. pl. 37.), most probably for a look out or Belvedere, the situation commanding an extensive view. Here, as in many other parts of England, any erection of a peculiar character is attributed to the "folly" of the builder, and designated by the name.The structure in question thus acquired the appellation of "Gibson's Folly," by which name it was commonly known. The road which led up to the establishment was called Folly Lane, by which name it is designated in the maps of 1785 and 1796.

Should the above be of interest to you, you are advised to view the original article, as this is not necessarily an exact 'transcript'.

Folly Fair

From Memorials of Liverpool....second edition, revised, with additions.

The triangular areas opposite the north end of St. George's Hall demands a passing notice. It was oribinally part of the heath, and remained in its primitive state down to the latter end of the last century. In a fine plate by Burdett of the Old Infirmary, given in Enfield's History of Liverpool (1774), it is shown as a rough foreground, with an antique wooden windmill in the centre. This mill was removed about 1780, and the ground levelled and paved. I then became the scene of the annual festivity called Folly Fair.

Should the above be of interest to you, you are advised to view the original article, as this is not necessarily an exact 'transcript'.