The Crystal Palace & the Park (Part 2)

This one structure cost £13.1 million in today's money. During the first world war (1914-1918) it had been used as a Naval Training Establishment called HMS Victory VI but had the nickname of HMS Crystal Palace by the locals. One hundred twenty five thousand men were trained for war here. After the end of the war it was opened as the Imperial war museum, but it was not popular. In the 1920s a Board of Trustees was set up and managed by Sir Henry Buckland. He went on about restoring the building and the Park and brought back the famous firework displays. The Palace had been fraught with small disasters and damage but on the night of the 30th of October 1936 it met its sad and final end. Sir Henry was out walking his dog and he noticed a small fire that was being tackled by two of his staff, the fire spread as the fire brigade raced to help. Despite the effort of 438 fire fighters and 88 appliances the Palace was doomed and by next morning there was nothing left but molten iron and melted glass. Strangely enough John Logie Baird the inventor of television had his transmitter here and the BBC had a studio down the Parade. The building was filmed as it burnt. Londoners and the eight counties that surround it did not need televison as they could not afford it then anyway, so they stood and watched, incredulous as to how iron and glass could burn. Here it is in 1936, on fire. The remains of its sad end are here.

Sir Winston Churchill called this Disaster, "the end of an era."

I had to go down this avenue of London plane trees or Platanus x hispanica. The peeling bark of these trees can be seen on the picture on the right.

This is a bit of our National Sports Centre opened in 1964 in the Park. It was built as London hoped to get the Olympics, but London failed to get them in the end, so they were held in Tokyo.

When this was built it upstaged the motor racing track that had been there many years. This was a Grand Prix track and many famous drivers raced there, the motor racing track was closed down in 1973 due partly to the complaints about the noise.

This is the Olympic size swimming pool, the only one in the UK! Our swimmers had to to travel the length of Britain to train here. They are building another one for the 2012 Olympics in east London. This is the back of it. The picture on the right is from the walkway to the entrance.

This is the front and a little Go-Kart track has been put there as well. This is a Grade II listed Building!

Now moving on to the fishing lake. This used to be open to the public and if you bought a ticket anyone could fish there, but not anymore.  It is now strictly private and a fishing club has the only rights to fish here! The picture on the right is one I just managed to get. It is a Great Crested Grebe with a pair of mute swans behind it. Although you do see them in Hyde Park, and sometimes in the River Thames, it is not that often you see them here.

Not only are there some mute swans but other things if you look closely. Nature's art, is that not beautiful?

The Victorians flocked to the area and thousands of houses were built, this is a typical one. If you notice it has windows just below the street level. That was the servant's quarters as the people who lived around the park were well off in the 1800s. The Victorians love for willows continues on this bank.

The Park Cafe, which is always popular. You do not have to buy anything in the Park if you do not wish to, simply bring your own and eat where you want to. This is the side and on the right is the front!

The other side of the cafe. Then what joy, a blue cedar with an original red telephone box underneath it! The buildings behind this are another Public Toilet complex.

This is the Memorial Bell put to remember the merchant seamen who lost their lives in world war two. It is officially called S.S. Crystal Palace, but the locals call it HMS Crystal Palace in memory of when the Palace was a Naval Training Establishment. At the front is the cricket pitch, once the home to the Kent County Cricket Club. W.G Grace the world's most famous and some say the best ever player, played cricket here. You can still play cricket or indeed sit down for a picnic! To the right is another children's play area as well.

I had to walk up and see these marvelous trees.

I love these little woodland walks. On the left are some yew trees, but the soil is so dry as we have had little rain.

Another woodland trail, and then the first bit of herbaceous I had seen. The Victorians were not into herbaceous borders at all. It took people like William Robinson and Gertrude Jekyll with the arts and crafts movement to change their thinking about that!

Purple coneflowers or Echinacea pupurea in the border, quite lovely!

This border on the left is so dry, look at the state of that poor Euphorbia at the front! Then the border drops away down to another area!

These Avenues of Victorian trees are just so beautiful.

I had to go down here as there was something I wanted to go round, what a sad looking small magnolia in the grass.

This is where I wanted to go, London's biggest Maze! The orginal maze here dates back to 1872 but became totally derelict in 1936. So as part of the restoration work they have redone it with new Poplar trees at the front, and the Maze itself is Hornbeam Hedging. It is famous as in 1909 a small group of Girls gate crashed a Boy Scout Rally here, they approached Sir Robert Baden-Powell (founder of the Boy scouts), and asked why there was nothing for the Girls, two months later the Girl Guides were set up by him. The Maze is 160' feet in diameter and was reopened in 2009. I do love the sign on the gate.

The entrance to the maze, you can go anyway you like.

Inside the maze, the Hedges are a lot thicker here. Personally i think they opened it too soon, they should have left it till the hedges were at least 8 feet high and very dense.

If you do not get lost it brings you out to the centre, which has been quite nicely done.

As you come out of the Maze, this is looking to one side with a fantastic purple Beech, and up the hill.

This is called the Dome, well there was a Dome there used for concerts etc. till they knocked it down. Someone had worked out that the Acoustics in this hollow were so perfect that the old Dome was not needed, so they built this for concerts and music instead. It is still used quite often for music events, and the good thing is if you do not mind sitting on the grass, it is FREE. Some Mallard Ducks playing with the Large Mirror Carp.

The Ducks having a quick meeting, as if you look in the lake there is one massive Carp. The whole of this Park absolutely teems with wildlife. From butterflies to birds, to insects galore and large fish. Plus some unwelcome ones like this posing Squirrel.

I have no idea what these two did wrong!

It is amazing to think that they are now excavating the worlds largest Aquarium that was up here. Trains brought in seawater everyday from the coast for it, typical Victorians. Unfortunately people got bored with it, so they drained it out and kept monkeys there. The Arches you see are blocked up, but they were in fact Colonnades with fantastic roof structures. They have been closed for safety reasons. There was even a Colonnade that led from one of the magnificent stations that were built. It was 240 yards long and had a roof to protect visitors from the weather.

The fantastic steps up to the Palace from the Park.

This is the BBC Transmitter or rather it used to be till it was sold. It is a landmark, as it is so high up and so big it can be seen from everywhere. As you can see the sky turned dark and I just got to the top and shelter, when it poured down.

I do hope you have enjoyed your tour of another bit of this beautiful place. Looking to the future it seems that someone with some common sense has made the whole Park Grade II listed as it is unique. The National Sports Centre is also protected, but the original site of the Crystal Palace is not. Therein lies the problem, for property developers would love to build expensive houses on the top  overlooking the park. This would also destroy the whole skyline view from and indeed over London and the weald of Kent. But money talks, common sense is not readily available nowadays, when people see £££ signs in their eyes. It would be a historic tragedy and indeed an environmental disaster if this area were to be built on. Who am I to say, I am merely someone who adores plants and wildlife.

All pictures are my own apart from the fire and the remains. The copyright has expired on these, under the 70-year rule.

LINKS.

Part 1.

Crystal Palace Park Spring Stroll.

The Aquarium.

The Great Exhibition.

The Crystal Palace Museum.

Film Of The Palace Burning.

Regards.

Neil.

For Nancy.

To John who hails from here and now lives in Japan, Happy memories.