All the fun Edwardian
AMAZING photographs of how Pleasureland looked in 1908 have surfaced, giving a fascinating glimpse into Southport’s past.
Chris Bentley, 41, a landscaper from Skelmersdale, came across 28 glass negatives in an auction in Chorley.
The slides are only 2½in wide big but are excellent quality once blown up.
They show visitors in Edwardian clothing enjoying their time at Southport fairground long before it became what we now know as Pleasureland.
A side friction roller coaster, grand carousel, ice cream stand and day nursery paint a picture of what a day at the fair was like at the turn of the century. A painted mountainscape backdrop is also present in one photo.
Chris said: “The slides are dated 1908 and look to have been taken by a family who I’m assuming would have been reasonably wealthy at the time.”
He received a phone call from Norman Wallis, the owner of Pleasureland, to possibly arrange to display the collection there for all to enjoy.
He said: “I was very interested to see these wonderful photographs. I think it’s really important to preserve these kinds of images – not just from a nostalgic viewpoint, but also so that we can look back at how things used to be done and learn from them to ensure we preserve our heritage and build on it going forward”.
The site opened as Pleasureland in 1922 as a sister park to Blackpool Pleasure Beach. The wooden roller coaster appears to pre-date the wooden Cyclone coaster, which opened in 1937.
The Cyclone closed in 2006, much to the dismay of local residents with some climbing to the top in an attempt to save it. Despite protests and petitions, it was dismantled in November of that year.
Chris said: “The area has been under several names and the fairground has moved locations and been at several sites. These pictures may have been just before the time when it was referred to as the White City.”
As one of the UK’s earliest coastal resorts, Southport began to grow in the late 18th century and was