THIS IS THE BLOG OF COLIN JONES, RHYL TOWN COUNCILLOR: BODFOR WARD
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The opinions expressed in this blog are entirely my own and not the views of the town council.
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Above is a picture of Foryd Hall, Rhyl. It was a big house built in the mid 1800s by Townshend Mainwaring, a Member of Parliament, as a family residence. Mr. Mainwaring was MP for Flintshire and Denbighshire, which indicates how sparse the population was in those days.
The house - generally known as Voryd Hall in those days - stood with its back to the harbour and faced an area known as ‘The Mudlands’. By the end of the 1800s with enthusiastic support from Mr. Mainwaring, this area had been developed as Marine Lake.
Marine Lake with its surrounding pleasure gardens improved the view from Foryd Hall and no doubt increased the value of the house and Mr. Mainwaring’s ‘Packet Inn’ which was nearby in Quay Street. He had other business interests in the town and in other towns.
In the late 1930s, the derelict Foryd Hall and its grounds were purchased by a Mr. P. Collins who demolished the building and stated his intention to build a Scenic Railway on the land but never got round to it.
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Below is an image of Marine Lake Fun Fair, probably 1920s. It is a view from the Oakland Avenue side looking towards Foryd Hall in the distance.
The shed-like building to your right of Foryd Hall may be the Alhambra Restaurant on what would become a generation later the Ocean Beach Fun Fair site.
[The sign in centre of picture says THIS IS THE CAT & CANARY GAME.]
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6720. Additional image added here in June 2020:
Camping and ball games at the Hall.
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