J H Buckingham - "The Michaelmas Fair, St Albans, 1852."
Period
Victorian (1837 - 1901)
Description
"The Michaelmas Fair, St Albans, 1852."pencil and watercolour drawings by J H Buckingham (1800-81).Buckingham's rough and ready work shows the approach to St Albans up Holywell Hill, a sight which horse and driver alike must have dreaded (extra horses could be hired for the ascent). Fortunately he never 'tidied' his scenes, and so we see the traffic as it must have been, with pedestrians, horses, cattle, carts and carriages using the road at random.The view of St Peters Street shows a fair with stalls and booths, a ferris wheel and a coconut shy or 'Aunt Sally'. The two- and four-legged traffic includes donkey rides and a children's toy carriage drawn by a goat. The roadway is rough and wide, with no very clear demarcation between carriageway, pavement, and fair; the same could be said on market days.The old town hall was opened in 1831, designed in a neo-classical style by architect George Smith.
Type of original
watercolour
Artist or photographer
Buckingham, John Henry
Location depicted in image
St Peter's Street, St Albans, Hertfordshire, UK.
Copyright
1)© St Albans Museums
Photo number
ph8609
