Issue 71 South Liverpool May 2013
TO CAL AD L T SE V OD EP E AG R A E2 T IS Y E
SOUTH
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The monthly independent advertiser 22,000 copies 18,500 into Homes 3,500 into Businesses in Woolton, Gateacre, Childwall, L18, L17, L15, Woolton Hill, Woolton Park and Calderstones.
GLASS HOUSE STYLE by Stephen Guy
Wealthy Victorians built impressive conservatories to enhance their homes and make statements about their position in society. While some people might have a greenhouse in their back yard or garden to grow tomatoes and house plants, the rich could afford to indulge their tastes in more elaborate structures. A century ago many villas and mansions in south Liverpool boasted beautiful conservatories. Unlike today, they were made of
wood and metal. They aimed to protect plants from the cold as well as provide havens for family and guests. Most were connected to the house, like today, but sometimes took on huge proportions. The conservatory at Palmyra in Aigburth Vale was almost as big as the main house. Other impressive examples were at Crofton, in Sudley Road, and Holmstead near Mossley Hill Church. The conservatory at Sudley
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House, now an art gallery, was rebuilt a few years ago using traditional methods. Sudley, like other neighbouring big houses, once featured extensive greenhouses to provide food and flowers throughout the year. Sefton Park’s Palm House is a conservatory on a massive scale, dwarfing even the largest domestic versions. Red granite was brought from the Isle of Mull to support the cast iron and steel structure containing 20 tons of glass. Opened in 1896 and heated by two big boilers, it cost a total of £10,000 including the plants. The conservatory at Calderstones Park is pictured on a postcard sent by Margery to Master Jasper Wood in Wakefield in January 1907.
She doubtless went to see the plants in the conservatory. Margery writes: “I have just been in the park and there is a lovely big lake and lots of boys swimming little boats.” The park also featured greenhouses that were very popular with generations of visitors. An 1874 definition of a conservatory says: “A house for the cultivation of tender exotic plants which, although requiring protection from frost and a little assistance of artificial heat, does not need
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the heat of the hothouse or stove. “The only distinction between a conservatory and a greenhouse is that in the former the plants grow in borders of earth; in the latter they are in pots.” In warmer parts of the country, the roof and sides were capable of being removed in summer. • Learn more about the history of Liverpool at the Museum of Liverpool, PierHead, open 10 am to 5 pm every day, admission free.
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Pages 15, 16, & 17
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STRANGE TALES Pages 8 & 9
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