If the question was asked what was the Crystal Palace? More than likely the answer would be an association football (soccer) team that plays in the English “Barclays Premier League”. If this was a pub quiz the answer would be correct and it would be next question please, however the more curious minded of us would wish to know how the football team got its name.
In the years before the Great War (1914-1918) the Final of the Football Association Challenge Cup (FA Cup) was held at a ground to the south of London known as the Crystal Palace Park. The owners of the ground wished for the stadium to be used as a regular venue, in order to tap into the crowd potential of the surrounding area and they raised a team, for the 1905-1906 season, to play in the Southern League’s second division, hence the name Crystal Palace F.C.
This now begs the question why was the ground called the Crystal Palace?
Between 1854 and 1936 there stood atop of Sydenham Hill a glass and iron edifice, which was a popular attraction for all walks of life - the Crystal Palace. It was erected as the main attraction to a park that had been laid out by the foremost gardener of his day - Joseph Paxton. For 82 years it had been a popular entertainment centre for both Londoners and visitors from further afield and had two railway stations (high level and low level) nearby, for easy access...
