Strawberry Field was a Salvation Army children's home in Woolton, a suburb of Liverpool, England.
The earliest reference to 'Strawberry Field' dates from 1870. In 1912 it was transferred to a wealthy merchant whose widow sold the estate to the Salvation Army in 1934. It opened on 7 July 1936. The original house was later demolished and replaced with a smaller purpose-built home for children which opened in the early 1970s. This home provided three family units, each accommodating 12 children. It closed in early January 2005 and is now a church and prayer centre. The famous gates marking its entrance were removed and replaced with replicas in May 2011.
The name of the home became world famous in 1967 with the release of The Beatles single "Strawberry Fields Forever" written by John Lennon. Lennon grew up near the home - one of his childhood treats was the garden party that took place each summer on the grounds of Strawberry Field. Lennon's Aunt Mimi recalled: 'As soon as we could hear the Salvation Army Band starting, John would jump up and down shouting "Mimi, come on. We're going to be late."' He and his childhood friends Pete Shotton and Ivan Vaughan often played in the wooded area behind the building, which Lennon nicknamed in the plural "Strawberry Fields."
Read more about Strawberry Field: Related Events
Famous quotes containing the words strawberry and/or field:
“One of the joys our technological civilisation has lost is the excitement with which seasonal flowers and fruits were welcomed; the first daffodil, strawberry or cherry are now things of the past, along with their precious moment of arrival. Even the tangerine—now a satsuma or clementine—appears de-pipped months before Christmas.”
—Derek Jarman (b. 1942)
““My mother thinks us long away;
‘Tis time the field were mown.
She had two sons at rising day,
To-night she’ll be alone.”
—A.E. (Alfred Edward)