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Crystal Palace History
Leaving Hyde Park, 1851
When the doors of the Great Exhibition closed in October 1851, it had already been agreed that Hyde Park had to be returned to its original state. From that arose the controversial question posed by Sir Joseph Paxton: 'What is to become of the Crystal Palace?' The building had become so popular...
Raising the first Pillar at Sydenham, 1852
The Times 6 August 1852 Page 5 Col. AAt Half-past 2 o’clock the visitors, guided by a programme which had been delivered to them, assembled round the spot where the first pillar of the palace was to be planted; and shortly afterwards a procession advanced, proceeded and marshalled by Mr...
Open again, 1854
It was intended to open the building on 1st May 1854 but because of constructional and financial problems it opened over a month late on 10th June. Another significant problem that contributed to the late opening was the fact that dozens of male statues throughout the building had to have their...
Map of Crystal Palace Park 1911
When the Knight Frank & Rutley Sales Catalogue was sold originally it came with a large (40"x50") colour map of Crystal Palace Park in a brown envelope.The story behind the catalogue and map.
When the Crystal Palace Company was declared bankrupt in 1911 the famous auctioneers Knight Frank...
Change of ownership, 1951
On the 1st August 1951 the Crystal Palace Trust was dissolved and responsibility for Crystal Palace Park passed into the hands of the London County Council and eventually to the Greater London Council. Much work was done by LCC/GLC staff in the Park to maintain the terraces, subway, and...History of the Crystal Palace (part 1)
Henry Cole's IdeaThe Crystal Palace was first erected in Hyde Park in 1850-51 to house the world's first international trade fair, the Great Exhibition of 1851. The Exhibition's origins lay in the national exhibitions of the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), and particularly in the Paris Exposition of...
Crystal Palace Royal Charters
When the Crystal Palace was moved to Sydenham, Joseph Paxton set up with others a Royal Charter Company - The Crystal Palace Company - to rebuild and run the Crystal Palace and grounds. The Company was declared Bankrupt in 1909.The Charters have been transcribed below in their entirety and...
The rebuilding at Sydenham, 1852-1854
The Hyde Park Crystal Palace building was purchased by the Crystal Palace Company for £70,000 (over £3.5 million today) from Fox & Henderson and on 5th August 1852 rebuilding began. During a time of high unemployment the project provided jobs for over 7,000 workmen. On Monday 15th August...
Bankruptcy, 1909
Disaster and misfortune were always associated with the Palace. The first major disaster was in 1861 when the building was badly damaged in a gale. The first major fire was on 30th December 1866 when the north transept containing among other areas the Alhambra, Assyrian, Byzantine Courts, and...
Disaster strikes, 1936
In 1914 a charitable trust under the control of the Ministry of Education was formed and the trustees hired Henry James Buckland (lately Manager of Harrogate Spa) as the Manager of the Crystal Palace. He was a firm but fair man who had a great love for the Crystal Palace - so much so that he...
Acts of Parliament covering the Sydenham Crystal Palace and grounds 1853 - 1990
The Sydenham Crystal Palace and grounds were originally covered by the Royal Charters as described elsewhere but from 1853 a number of Acts were passed mainly for the purpose of raising more funding capital.The Acts should be available at your nearest reference library.
13 May...
History of the Crystal Palace (part 2)
A New PalaceThe Crystal Palace was removed from Hyde Park in the autumn of 1852 and the components taken to Sydenham. Paxton took this opportunity to enhance the building by adding further tiers and increasing the height and width of the central transept. Two smaller transepts were added to...