The Queen’s Observatory in People’s Park c1900.

A contact print from a glass negative. From the collection of the late Doreen Whittingham.

On 8th June 1899, the Mayor, Councillor W. Southworth, J.P., used a silver trowel to lay the foundation stone of the Observatory, his gift to the town. The “Queen’s Observatory” or “Southworth’s Folly” was opened by the Mayoress on 21st June 1900. The tower had a spiral staircase with a step for every year of Queen Victoria’s life. In June 1940, the iron railings and columns from the tower’s platform were removed. The building remained in a dangerous condition until it was demolished on 22nd November 1949.

The position of the tower has been located using maps and one of our other images. One of the four trees which were planted near the corners of the Observatory still exists.