Special Collection (re-do): Sheffield & The Festival of Britain

On May 4th, 1951 the main Festival of Britain site on the South Bank of the Thames opened to the public.  Around the country, many other towns, villages, and cities prepared to join in with their own events and celebrations.  Some would be part of the official touring programme whether that be a visit from the Festival Ship Campagnia or as host to one of the main art or music festivals but others like Sheffield, who weren't a part of the official celebration circuit would put on their own events.

Sheffield's Festival of Britain Handbook

As a way of promoting the city beyond its industrial reputation to a wider audience, a handbook edited by the city librarian J. P. Lamb was commissioned.  10 000 copies were printed and sent all over the world offering readers a view of Sheffield beyond its factories and furnaces, you can view a copy in the special collection Festival of Britain memorabilia collection. 

Other cultural events included an exhibition at the Graves Gallery on British Modern Art and a Film Festival in the Central Library.

Sporting events under the FoB banner also took place around the country.  On May 16th as part of a national Festival of Football organised by the FA, 13 900 spectators saw Sheffield Wednesday take on Danish side FREM in an exhibition match at Hillsborough that ended in a 0-0 draw. 

Two days later on the 18th of May, the first of a number of civic events took place.  The Lord Mayor Alderman Keeble Wilson opened the Festival of Britain Conservatory and Gardens in Weston Park and also the Festival of Britain Woodland at Forge Dam Park.  Later in the year on the 27th of July the new Lord Mayor  Alderman T.W. Bridgland, J.P opened the Rivelin Valley Park Playground and Paddling Pools.

Seventy years on the marks those civic projects made on the city can still be seen and some projects can still be enjoyed. 

Two plaques on the entrance to Forge Dam Park at the junction of Whiteley Lane and Quiet Lane mark the opening of the Festival Woodland. The woodland over the years has matured and become overgrown but to mark the 70th anniversary of its opening the Friends of the Porter Valley Conservation Volunteers are currently undertaking a project to tidy up the woodland and return it to its former glory.

Plaque at the entrance to the Festival of Britain Woodland, Sheffield. (Image credit: Simon Quinn)

Entrance to Forge Dam Park, Quiet Lane, Sheffield. (Image credit: Simon Quinn)

Plaque at the entrance to the Festival of Britain Woodland, Sheffield. (Image credit: Simon Quinn)

The Conservatory in Weston Park, unfortunately, fell into disrepair and was eventually demolished in 2004.  However, there are two plaques marking the opening ceremony that can be found on a covered seating area close to the Godfrey Sykes memorial.

Plaque for the Festival of Britain Conservatory and Garden, Weston Park, Sheffield. (Image credit: Simon Quinn)

Seating area Weston Park Festival of Britain plaques on the wall behind. (Image credit: Simon Quinn)

Plaque for the Festival of Britain Conservatory and Garden, Weston Park, Sheffield. (Image credit: Simon Quinn)

The playground and the Rivelin Valley Paddling pools are still there.  After a public consultation, the pools were revamped in 2013.

Rivelin Valley paddling pools, May 2021. (Image credit: Simon Quinn)

Entrance gate to the paddling pools, May 2021. (Image credit: Simon Quinn)

View of the paddling pools, May 2021. (Image credit: Simon Quinn)

There is another local Festival project that you can still visit, originally it was within the West Riding of Yorkshire as a part of Wortley Rural District Council, but subsequent boundary changes mean that it now sits within the Sheffield City area. 

Where Jawbone Hill meets Oughtibridge Lane (aka Cote d'Oughtibridge) between Oughtibridge and Grenoside there's a viewing area where you can find the Birley Stone (a boundary stone dating from 1161) and next to that sits the Festival Stone. The Festival stone is a toposcope indicating notable features and landmarks as you look out across the Don Valley.   

The Festival Stone and the Birley Stone. (Image credit: Simon Quinn)

Toposcope looking out across the Don Valley, Sheffield. (Image credit: Simon Quinn)

Festival logo, Sheffield. (Image credit: Simon Quinn)