An ex-MP and newspaper magnate known for ‘furthering the education’ of working people by funding public libraries, is to be honoured in a special day event and a bike tour around three of the buildings he bankrolled, writes Andrew Pearson…
Many south Londoners will have seen the old library that stands on Wells Way in Burgess Park. Some will have been to past events there. But many may not realise it was funded by the remarkably generous John Passmore Edwards.
From humble Cornish beginnings, Passmore Edwards went on to become a journalist, newspaper proprietor and MP. He amassed a sizable fortune which he used to further the education of working people all over the UK. He did this mainly by funding numerous public buildings – around 70 in total, with a special focus on libraries.
In all, Edwards donated money to found 15 libraries in London – four of them in Southwark – as well as several other public buildings, such as the South London Gallery in Camberwell.
This year marks the 200th anniversary of his birth on 24th March 1823, and Friends of Burgess Park is joining with others around the UK to put on a day of celebration in his honour – Passmore Edwards 200 Festival – on Sunday, March 26.
There will be a programme of events based at the old library, baths and washhouse on Wells Way.
There will also be a short bike tour around three of Passmore Edwards’ south London buildings, guided by a renowned local architect.
Many of these buildings are still in public use today, though not all for their original purposes. The Wells Way library was opened in 1903 as part of the Camberwell Borough Council’s ‘one-stop-shop’ of library, baths and washhouse.
Passmore Edwards contributed £3,000 to the Library section of the building, consisting of a reading room, bookshelves and a newspaper room at the opposite end, with a spiral staircase to the children’s library in the basement.
His frequent collaborator, architect Maurice Adams, designed the library section of the building, while the borough architect designed the baths – unusually – but the fit is remarkable. It was described by Sir Nikolaus Pevsner, scholar and author of the guides The Buildings of England, as being ‘a picturesque group with Baroque porch, Gothic gable, Tudor windows, and a Queen Anne bay-window, and yet quite successful and typical of 1900.’ Other people have been known to refer to the red brick and white stone as ‘streaky bacon’.
The building, in common with most of the fruits of Passmore Edwards’ philanthropy, is now Grade II listed. Southwark Council still owns the property and is committed to ensuring it has a place in the future of the Park, although its original purposes have lapsed.
With the loss of housing and the creation of the park, the baths and washhouse closed in the 1980s and the library in the early ‘90s. Since then, Lynn Boxing Club has occupied the baths, with a church, theatre, artists’ popup and offices of Groundwork using other parts.
The pandemic, however, left only boxing, and the rest is sadly unoccupied. The Friends of Burgess Park said they were hoping the celebration would focus attention on this significant building which sits, very under-used, in the middle of Burgess Park.
Passmore Edwards, who lived to the age of 88, was a lifelong champion of working people and most of his projects were concerned with their welfare – hospitals, schools, institutes, a sailor’s palace, art galleries and libraries (and even books for the libraries). He originally made his money in newspaper publishing, papers often aimed at educating the workers, and sold at a low price for the time. He gave away much of his money in the later years of his life, often getting involved with the projects he funded.
The event will run from 2 pm on Sunday, March 26 at Wells Way Library. The bike tour will take 2 hours and tickets cost £10. It has a limit of 25 spaces and must be reserved here.
To find out more go to friendsofburgesspark.org.uk