Queen Victoria's statue


Recommended Posts

In a post earlier I talked about the 50's cinema's. As you approached the square down Maid Marian way near those two cinemas there was a statue of Queen Vic. Anyone know what happened to it? A thought at the back of my head says it was moved to the arboretum.

Link to post
Share on other sites

bin done b4

Try an advanced search?

apple banana Find posts that contain at least one of these words

+apple +juice Find posts with both words

+apple -juice Find posts with 'apple' but not 'juice'

apple* Find posts with 'apple' and/or 'applesauce'

"Some Words" Find posts with the phrase 'some words of wisdom', 'some words' but not 'some noise words'

Link to post
Share on other sites

The statue of Queen Victoria was moved to the Embankment Gardens in 1953.

There is a picture dated 1905 on the `picture the past' site from a similar angle dated 1905. I don`t know when women started showing their calves but it must have been in the 1920`s,so the anwer must lie around 20`s 30`s I reckon.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Thanks for all your replies. The picture answers my question. I thought though that it moved well after 1953 because it was there when I started my drinking in about 1955.

Just down from the Griffin and Spalding store was a lovely hotel I think called the Black Boy with pillars at the entrance. It all looked rather grand from the outside. As a working class kid I had no hope of seeing the inside. Knocked down or converted years ago. I wonder if anyone got any of the furnishings from the place.

Link to post
Share on other sites

The Morley Statue.

"...we come to the white marble STATUE on a granite pedestal, erected to the memory of SAMUEL MORLEY, M.P., in 1888. He was a well-known philanthropist, and a member of the local firm of T. & R. Morley, hosiery manufacturers, which commenced business in Nottingham one hundred years ago..."

Sez Mr G.Oogle...

Cheers

Robt P.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I made a mistaken post a while back about that being where the Q.V. statue was and I went on to quote some long distant memory that I rememeber reading somewhere that it was moved during the war for safe keeping may be it was this one?

Link to post
Share on other sites
The Morley Statue.

"...we come to the white marble STATUE on a granite pedestal, erected to the memory of SAMUEL MORLEY, M.P., in 1888. He was a well-known philanthropist, and a member of the local firm of T. & R. Morley, hosiery manufacturers, which commenced business in Nottingham one hundred years ago..."

Sez Mr G.Oogle...

Cheers

Robt P.

That would be I & R Morley (not T & R), headquarters in Heanor, which became part of the Meridian Group, and ultimately Courtaulds Knitwear Limited. I worked for Meridian 1973-78.

Link to post
Share on other sites

George Oogle awakes, following his nap

"...1,500 GBP was raised by public subscription for a statue dedicated to Samuel Morley. Made by sculptor Harvard Thomas of Chelsea, it was unveiled in Theatre Square in October 1888. This statue was broken in Dec. 1926 whilst being moved to a new site at the entrance to the Aboretum. It was replaced by the bust by Joseph Else in Dec.1928..."

Samuel Morley (1809-1886) - Head of I & R Morley

"...Samuel Morley was born in 1809, the youngest of John Morley's three sons. His father, and uncle Richard, founded the family's knitting business and established its London warehouse and distribution base.

The firm of I & R Morley played a significant role in the knitting industry and by 1844 was responsible for 6% of the industry's output. A forward thinking company, Morleys had established its brand name and developed an identifiable trademark. Goods marked with the letter 'M' were recognised as being Morleys and high quality goods.

Samuel Morley took over the firm's Nottingham operations in 1855 and the overall business in 1860. Once in control he implemented an ambitious policy of supplying a wide range of knitted goods to the market. As a result many varieties, sizes and colours of goods were produced, leading to catalogues of 40,000-50,000 products by the time of the First World War. The problem of balancing stock levels and finance to pay for stocks was an issue faced by many companies and forced some into financial difficulties. Morley's policy of expanding the firm's range put pressure on finances and required close and careful management by Morley.

Morley also oversaw the expansion of the firm's factories. New sites were opened on Manvers Street and Handel Street, Nottingham, and in Heanor, Leicester, Loughborough and Sutton in Ashfield.

In 1865 Morley was elected Liberal MP for Nottingham, and later MP for Bristol between 1868 and 1885. Morley developed strong links with nonconformist churches and was influenced by the thinking of the church. He became a prominent member of the Irish Evangelical Society that aimed to support the foundation of nonconformist churches across Ireland. He also help to build the Congregational Memorial Hall in London and supported William Booth in his work to establish the Salvation Army.

Morley, with his Christian conscience, was also supportive of the working man. When the Bee-Hive, a trade union weekly newspaper, nearly went bankrupt, Morley and Daniel Platt saved the newspaper by buying up its shares. In 1871 Morley founded the Warehousemen and Clerks' Association to provide friendly society benefits and health insurance for the firm's staff employed in its Wood Street London warehouse. The firm also helped to support some of the remaining framework knitters. Many of the industry's employees had moved into factories by the late nineteenth century, but some still operated hand frames on a domestic basis. In 1865 Morleys still employed 50,000 framework knitters. The firm retrained knitters to bring them into factories and paid older knitters small pensions.

After Morley's death in 1886 a number of commemorations were planned in his memory. A statue of Morley was erected in Bristol in 1887 and Morley Congregationalist Church was built in the city in 1889. A memorial was also placed in Nottingham Arboretum and a statue in Market Street, Nottingham..."

Copyright 2002 Knitting Together

Link to post
Share on other sites

Beginning of my above post:

"...1,500 GBP was raised by public subscription for a statue dedicated to Samuel Morley. Made by sculptor Harvard Thomas of Chelsea, it was unveiled in Theatre Square in October 1888. This statue was broken in Dec. 1926 whilst being moved to a new site at the entrance to the Aboretum. It was replaced by the bust by Joseph Else in Dec.1928..."

Cheers

Robt P.

Link to post
Share on other sites

That was the story I was mixing up in other posts

Thanks for putting me straight Rob

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 years later...

I can remember the statue in its original position with trolley buses passing by. Everything in Nottingham in those days that couldn't go home and wash was covered in grime and the queen was no exception. Her removal was one of the expensive changes made to the city and, looking back, you have to wonder whether the changes were intended for the benefit of the citizens or to line a few pockets. One the other hand, why should the statue be there at the centre of the city at all?

Link to post
Share on other sites

On the other hand, why should the statue be there at the centre of the city at all?

Because she was a revered figure in the whole British Empire set up...When Liz dies you will see councils trying to outdo each other with similar statues of her.Unveiled by Charlie and his Adultress...if they're still alive.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Because she was a revered figure in the whole British Empire set up...

I agree PB. I do not know if QV was paid for by public donations or by the city corporation but judging by the turn-out, the city-folk were still grieving.

Statues do have a habit of moving around. As memories fade away the relevance fades too. Will the Brian Clough statue be there in 50 years or will it be moved to say the City Ground?

Link to post
Share on other sites

Very true Froggy, what we tend to forget is how they got to be where they are, ie started out as the village bully a few centuries back, wealth derived by raiding and stealing from the next village, ie plundering, looting and raping. Sounds like not much has changed does it.

Link to post
Share on other sites

To my mind Clough ought to be there anyway...a respected figure for football fans, but means damn all to me.

With all the millions they wasted on yet another city square update, they should have built a 50 foot vandal proof column to Robin Hood to really set it off.Something that would have lasted more than twenty years.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Very true Froggy, what we tend to forget is how they got to be where they are, ie started out as the village bully a few centuries back, wealth derived by raiding and stealing from the next village, ie plundering, looting and raping. Sounds like not much has changed does it.

Well, German and Greek village bullies, at least! !englandflag!

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 8 months later...

Thanks for all your replies. The picture answers my question. I thought though that it moved well after 1953 because it was there when I started my drinking in about 1955.

Just down from the Griffin and Spalding store was a lovely hotel I think called the Black Boy with pillars at the entrance. It all looked rather grand from the outside. As a working class kid I had no hope of seeing the inside. Knocked down or converted years ago. I wonder if anyone got any of the furnishings from the place.

My sister has a bill for about £1.50 for a nights stay on her wedding night including a Newspaper and Parking. Circa 1947.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I paid for a night at a hotel in Ilfracome on the hill on the way out around 1975.

£1.50 B&B.

Was a bit like Fawlty Towers?

Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...