Ruined Victorian Folly – London, England - Atlas Obscura
Places near me Random place

AO Edited

Ruined Victorian Folly

London, England

Remnants of a Victorian garden feature sitting in public woodland. 

View all photos
Ruins of a Victorian folly in Sydenham Hill Woods, London, UK. (Mark Bowler/Atlas Obscura) Facebook771620304 (Atlas Obscura User)
Ruins of a Victorian folly in Sydenham Hill Woods, London, UK. (Mark Bowler/Atlas Obscura) Facebook771620304 (Atlas Obscura User)
Detail from ruined Victorian Folly in Sydenham Hill Woods, London, UK. (Mark Bowler/Atlas Obscura) Facebook771620304 (Atlas Obscura User)
Folly upper right SEANETTA (Atlas Obscura User)
290
2143
Top Places in London
Gordon Museum of Pathology
London, England
Crossness Pumping Station
London, England
The Ruins of St. Dunstan-in-the-East
London, England
 See All

Hidden in a small inner city wood are the remains of a lavish Victorian garden feature. The concrete faux-stone archways, rockery, and ornamental stream were once in the former grounds of the house Fairwood at 53 Sydenham Hill, built in about 1864. First occupied by Alderman David Henry Stone, who in 1874 was Lord Mayor of London. Shortly after moving to Fairwood Alderman Stone commissioned James Pulham & Son to build the folly.

A folly is described an expensive ornamental structure that serves no practical purpose other than it is decorative. especially a spire or mock-Gothic ruin constructed in a large public space or garden.

The site can be accessed all year via several of the muddy paths that snake through the woods, adjacent to Sydenham Golf Course. Google Maps shows the area as Dulwich Woods (the two areas of woodland interlink).

Know Before You Go

Wear sensible and practical shoes. Though the path at times is paved, there are sections that be quite muddy. There are information boards and maps dotted around, especially at various entrances. Highly suggested to take a photo of  one of the maps to use should one become disorientated.

follies follies and grottoes architectural oddities architecture
Nearby
St Antholin's Spire
0.42 miles
Horniman Aquarium
0.53 miles
Horniman Museum and Gardens
0.53 miles
Want to see fewer ads? Become a Member.
Near This Place
St Antholins Spire
London, England

St Antholin's Spire

This stone spire holds a unique place in the region's history.
View of one of the coral reef marine ecosystems and its spectacular fish
London, England

Horniman Aquarium

A wonderfully eclectic Victorian aquarium lies in the basement of the Horniman Museum.
Brightly Colored Display Cases
London, England

Horniman Museum and Gardens

A Victorian natural history and ethnographic museum with wonderful turn-of-the-century, science-book-esque evolution displays.
London, England

Ruins of the Crystal Palace

The remains of Crystal Palace Great Exhibition of 1851.
Related Places
The elaborate top of the tower.
Halifax, England

Wainhouse Tower

This tallest folly in the world began its life as an elaborate factory chimney.
Iulia Hasdeu Castle.
Câmpina, Romania

Iulia Hasdeu Castle

This eccentric folly house was designed by Romanian thinker Bogdan-Petriceicu Hasdeu, with a helping hand from his deceased daughter's spirit.
Turkish Tent, Painshill Park.
Cobham, England

Painshill Park Follies

Amazing collection of folly buildings in Cobham, Surrey.
Northamptonshire, England

Rushton Triangular Lodge

An intriguing three-sided folly is a testament to one man's devotion to Catholicism and the number three.
In partnership with KAYAK

Plan Your Trip

From Around the Web