Building record MDR11675 - No. 2 Folly House, Folly Road, Derby

No. 2 Folly House, Folly Road, Derby, an 18th century building. The precise history and development of Folly House is uncertain. It has been suggested that the building was constructed as a late 17th century water powered mill which failed as a result of insufficient water due to the weirs upstream at the Boars Head Mill reducing the flow. The name 'Folly' could derive from this failed venture. What is certain is that the original owner of Folly House sold the property to Thomas Evans in 1778, at a time when Evans was purchasing a great deal of land in the area for the extension of the Boars Head Mill. Whether or not Evans considered using the building as a mill is not unknown and it was eventually converted into three dwellings to accommodate mill workers. The building probably underwent a certain amount of remodelling as a result. Photographs of c1900 show three equally sized and spaced pointed gables to the second storey southern elevation, originally the front of the house (although now the rear). Dentil string courses suggest it was originally a three storey building, however, probably with a simpler roof. A later addition, of unknown date, was made to the northern elevation, adding an extra room. In 1938 No. 1 Folly House was demolished on the grounds of poor sanitation, leaving the former dividing wall between Nos. 1 and 2 as the gable end wall. A photographic survey of the building was carried out in August 2007 in advance of a three storey extension on the east side of No. 2 that will occupy the footprint of the demolished No. 1 in order to reinstate the original building. The survey noted that there was no evidence to demonstrate that the building had been built, or used, as a mill. (1)