28j15: Queen Victoria & public lavatory. Victoria Square, 1981 - City Centre
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A view of Hull
Still Occupied
Images on this site are arranged into rough areas by location as in my book 'Still Occupied', available on Blurb. Eventually this site will contain all the images in that book and more.
Conveniently placed public toilets under the statue of Queen Victoria by Henry Charles Fehr erected in 1903 in Hull's main square. The toilets date from 1923 and their position under the former monarch was highly controversial at the time but Victoria was back on the throne the following year. The toilets were restored in 1989 but retain most of their original fittings in the Gentlemen's section. Both statue and toilets are Grade II listed.
King Billy (William III) in Market Place with 4 lamps around him is Grade I listed, though the toilets he rides towards are again only Grade II listed. I rather doubt if Queen Victoria would be amused to find herself above the public conveniences, and I'm sure that - unlike King Billy, who is well-known to pop down off his mount for a pint when the clock on Holy Trinity strikes midnight - she never needs to make use of the facilities beneath her.
Peter Marshall
01784 456474