Ilojo Bar

Ilojo Bar & Restaurant
Location Lagos Island, Lagos, Lagos State, Nigeria
Material concrete
Completion date 1855
Dismantled date 11 September 2016
a service advert on a 1939 publication of Daily Times of Nigeria

Ilojo Bar, also called Olaiya House or Casa do Fernandez, was a Brazilian-styled historic building located near Tinubu Square in Lagos Island, Lagos State, Nigeria.[1][2] It was originally built as a bar and restaurant in 1855 by the Fernandez family who employed returning ex-slaves who had mastered the art of building while in South America.[3] Ilojo Bar was subsequently sold to Alfred Omolana Olaiya of the Olaiya family in 1933 and was declared a national monument in 1956 by the National Commission for Museums and Monuments.[4]

The name "Ilojo Bar"

After the house was sold to Daniel Omolona Olaiya in 1933, he renamed the building "Ilojo Bar" after his hometown of "Ilojo" in Ijesa Isu, Ekiti State.[5]

Demolition

The building was pulled down on Sunday, 11 September 2016, in suspicious circumstances during the Eid weekend in Lagos.[6][7] The matter is still being investigated. The land is now under the control of the Lagos State Government.[8][9]

References

  1. Hakeem B. Harunah (2000). Nigeria's defunct slave ports: their cultural legacies and touristic value. First Academic Publishers. ISBN 978-978-34902-3-9.
  2. Edvige Jean-François; Chris Giles (19 July 2017). "Lagos' Afro-Brazilian architecture faces down the bulldozers". Cable News Network. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  3. Alex Ikechukwu Okpoko; Pat Uche Okpoko (2002). Tourism in Nigeria. Afro-Orbis Publications. ISBN 978-978-35253-8-2.
  4. Udemma Chukwuma (22 October 2014). "'Bring Ilojo Bar back to life'". The Nation Newspaper. Retrieved 5 September 2016.
  5. "A Tragedy of Confusing Interests". ktravula - a travelogue!. 2016-10-02. Retrieved 2017-02-26.
  6. "161-year-old Ilojo Bar demolished - The Nation Nigeria". 2016-09-13. Retrieved 2016-09-18.
  7. "A Failure All Around". ktravula - a travelogue!. 2016-10-03. Retrieved 2017-02-26.
  8. "Update on the Demolition of Ilojo Bar". 2016-09-18. Retrieved 2016-09-19.
  9. Joseph Jibueze (28 September 2016). "Why Ilojo bar was demolished, by family". The Nation. Retrieved 30 September 2016.

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