Perrott's Folly
| Perrott's Folly | |
|
Warwickshire | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Perrott's Folly | |
| Type: | Folly tower |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SP047862 |
| Location: | 52°28’28"N, 1°55’52"W |
| Town: | Edgbaston |
| History | |
| Built 1758 | |
| For: | John Perrott |
| Folly tower | |
| Information | |
Perrott's Folly, also known as The Monument, or The Observatory, is a 96-foot tall tower in Edgbaston in Warwickshire and within Birmingham's conurbation of towns. The tower is a folly, built in 1758, when the land about was still green fields. Today the townscape swirls all around it.
The tower is a Grade II* listed building.[1]
History
The tower was built by John Perrott (who lived in Belbroughton) to stand in Rotton Park, then open land
There are many stories to explain why the tower was built. One is that Perrott wanted to be able to survey his land and perhaps entertain guests. Others say the tower might have been used to spot animals for hunting. Another story is that he built the tower so that he could see his wife's grave, fifteen miles away.
From 1884 to 1979 the tower was used as a weather recording station for the Birmingham and Midland Institute. In 1966 the Geography Department of the University of Birmingham took over the running of the observatory until operations were transferred to the main campus.
The area was well known to the author J R R Tolkein, who was brought up nearby, and it has been suggested,[2][3] but not proven, that the towers of Perrott's Folly and Edgbaston Waterworks may have influenced the Two Towers appearing in Lord of the Rings.
Prospects
The Perrott's Folly Company was formed in 1984 to renovate the tower and make it accessible to the public. The company obtained grants from English Heritage and the city council to secure the building.
In the summer of 2005 the Company, in partnership with Birmingham Conservation Trust, completed work to stabilise the structure.[4] However, money still has to be found to complete repairs to some of the key features. In April 2008 the tower was temporarily opened to the public, housing an art exhibition in co-operation with the Ikon Gallery.[5] It was opened again in May 2008 as part of a weekend of celebrations of the life of J. R. R. Tolkien.[6] The Perrott's Folly Company was formally closed in August 2009. The tower was managed by Trident Housing Association between 2005 and 2017 and is now managed by Re.Future Collective, a Birmingham based Arts and Architecture Collective.[7]
Outside links
- Perrott's Folly – Register of Heritage at Risk (Historic England)
References
- ↑ National Heritage List 1076123: Perrott's Folly (Grade II* listing)
- ↑ "J. R. R. Tolkien". birmingham.gov.uk. 31 May 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-06-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20070607202651/http://www.birmingham.gov.uk/preview/GenerateContent?CONTENT_ITEM_ID=712&CONTENT_ITEM_TYPE=0&MENU_ID=15. Retrieved 2007-08-26.
- ↑ "Tolkien's Birmingham". VirtualBrum. Archived from the original on 2013-04-11. https://web.archive.org/web/20130411033734/http://www.virtualbrum.co.uk/articles/tolkiens-birmingham/. Retrieved 2013-03-06.
- ↑ "Perrott’s Folly". Birmingham Conservation Trust. http://www.birminghamconservationtrust.org/bct-finished/perrotts-folly/. Retrieved 22 November 2009.
- ↑ Loat, Sarah. "Perrott's Folly re-opens to the public". BBC Birmingham. https://www.bbc.co.uk/birmingham/content/articles/2008/04/01/perrotts_folly_feature.shtml. Retrieved 22 November 2009.
- ↑ "'Tolkien tower' opens to public". BBC News. 1 April 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/7324028.stm. Retrieved 22 November 2009.
- ↑ "Perrott's Folly". Re.Future Collective. http://refuturecollective.com/perrotts-folly/. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
- Leather, Peter: 'A Guide to the Buildings of Birmingham' ISBN 0-7524-2475-0