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• Type

  Map

  Title

  Map for Memorial Drinking Fountain to the ‘Diana’ whaling vessel and its crew, Victoria Pier, Lerwick (LB52660)

  Download(https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600040399)

Summary

Description

Dated 1890 and made by James Hunter of Aberdeen, a memorial drinking fountain to the 1866-67 voyage of the whaling ship, Diana. Standing on a circular grey granite base, the fountain is constructed in polished pink Peterhead granite. The fountain comprises two stacked cylinders with a domed upper section supported by four columns and topped by a spire-shaped finial. There are two niches in the bottom (for dogs to drink from). There are small metal eye hooks embedded in the granite for attaching drinking cups to. A stylised chalice sculpture by local artist, Alan Hart, was added in 2000, replacing the original water tap. The fountain's circular base is a later addition and is surrounded by granite setts in a circular pattern. It is located at the southwestern end of Victoria Pier in Lerwick.

The bottom cylinder is inscribed: "Erected 1890 / by / Alderman Frederic Smith J.P / 4th Mayor of West Ham, / And Brother of the Late Surgeon.”

The cylinder above is inscribed: "In Memory of / The Providential Return of the / S. Whaler "Diana” of Hull, 1866-67 / Captain Late John Gravill / Surgeon Late Charles Edward Smith / Then they cried unto the Lord in / their trouble and he delivered them out of their distresses. Ps. DVII.8.” The obverse is inscribed: "Jesus stood and cried, saying, if any man / thirst let him come unto ME and drink / John 7.37. / Will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. Rev. 21.6. / And let him that is athirst come: and who- / soever will, let him take the water of life / freely. Rev. 22.17.”

The top section is inscribed: "God is faithful, I will trust and not be afraid. Is. 12.2.”

Historical development

The fountain was inaugurated on 26 May 1890, 10 years after the death of the ship's surgeon, Dr Charles Edward Smith, by his brother, Frederic Smith, Mayor of West Ham, London (Shetland News, 24^th and 31^st May; Dundee Evening Telegraph, May 1890). The fountain commemorates the return to Ronas Voe of an ill-fated whaling voyage of the Diana in 1866-67 to Greenland.

The whaling ship, Diana, was built in 1840 in Bremen in Germany. A steam engine was later added. The Diana set off from Hull on an expedition to Baffin Bay in 1866. Following a stop to gain crew and provisions, the Diana left Lerwick in May 1866. Of 52 crew members, 30 were Shetlanders.

The Diana became trapped in Arctic ice for over 6 months. Several of the crew, including the Captain, John Gravill, died. Once the ship was freed, those that survived managed to navigate themselves to Ronas Voe, arriving on 2 April 1867. There were 13 crew deaths, and of those, 9 were from Shetland (Shetland Times, 24 March 2000).

The ship was repaired and re-crewed and it continued on whaling expeditions for another two years. The Diana sank off the Lincolnshire coast in October 1869 (Hull Packet).

The fountain is first shown on the 2^nd Edition Ordnance Survey map of 1900. It was originally positioned at the head of Victoria Pier at the intersection with The Esplanade. The Ordnance Survey map of 1928 shows the fountain in the same position. The fountain was moved slightly to the north in the 1950s and its new location is shown on the Ordnance Survey map of 1965 (Shetland Museum and Archives, photo number SL02039). The fountain was again relocated further to the north in the mid-1990s to make way for the circular pump house on the pier (Flickr).

A photograph taken in the 1890s shows the fountain was originally on a two-stage base, comprising an octagonal plinth with a smaller, circular base above on which the fountain sat. This image shows the fountain originally had a tall metal tap with drinking spouts beneath the dome (Shetland Museum and Archives, photo number 00035JR). Another later photograph (date unknown) shows a drinking cup attached to the tap by a chain (Shetland Museum and Archives, photo number AI00856). At some point in the later 20^th century, the tap was replaced, before being eventually disconnected and removed (Shetland Museum and Archives, photo numbers RY00710, NE05210). The current stylised chalice sculpture was added in 2000 (Shetland Times, July 2000).

Statement of Special Interest

The memorial drinking fountain meets the criteria of special architectural or historic interest for the following reasons:

• Its construction in good quality materials in contrasting pink and grey granite. Later additions and changes to the original location have not affected the structure's historic character or its cultural significance.
• Its historic setting is largely unchanged and it remains at Victoria Pier, very close to its original location.
• Its social historical interest and commemorative interest for its association with the ill-fated 1866-67 voyage of the whaling ship, Diana and for its association with Arctic whaling and the role Shetland played in that industry.

Architectural interest:

Design

The polished pink granite drinking fountain was made by James Hunter, granite merchant, of King Street in Aberdeen (Dundee Evening Telegraph). The fountain was designed to be used by people and by animals, as shown by the bowl-shaped niches around the fountain's base. Its design is simple, but its form demonstrates quality craftsmanship. The rough grey granite base contrasts with the highly polished pink granite and shows off the skill of the craftsman. The use of various decorative elements/shapes, such as the dome, columns and finial, as well as the tooled inscriptions, showcases a variety of granite masonry techniques.

The drinking fountain is a small-scale version of the more monumental civic fountains found in larger towns and cities. This example in Lerwick is dual purpose, acting as a memorial to the Diana whaling expedition of 1866-67, and as a public source of fresh water for the townspeople. Access to fresh water was part of the drive for sanitary reform across the United Kingdom in the mid-19^th century and many public water fountains were erected.

The memorial is built from high quality materials that are typical for a fountain of this date. The pink granite used in this fountain came from a quarry at Peterhead. Granite was a popular building material for fountains and memorials in the 19^th and 20^th century, because it is a very hard, dense stone that is durable and resistant to weathering. Granite comes in various colours, patterns and mineral compositions, making it aesthetically pleasing for public monuments. A similar example by James Hunter is the Temperance drinking fountain in Duthie Park in Aberdeen, dated 1883 (LB46785, listed at category C).

The fountain is no longer connected to a water supply and the tap and drinking cups have been removed. A chalice sculpture has been added in its place and the fountain has moved position slightly, however changes such as these are not uncommon for former civic fountains that survive as decorative street furniture. Overall, the fountain is a largely complete structure that is constructed in good quality materials.

Setting

The fountain is located in a prominent position on Victoria Pier within the Lerwick – Central Area/Lanes Conservation Area (CA320).

While the position of this fountain has moved a since it was first erected in 1890, it remains at the head of the Victoria Pier and, as such, retains much of its historic setting. Its current position, incorporated into the public pavement and protected from road traffic, continues to afford the fountain a considered position overlooking its maritime setting.

The fountain is located close to the Shetland South Atlantic Whaler memorial further along the promenade to the south. Together, these memorials are tangible reminders of the historic whaling industry, both the Arctic and the later Antarctic fisheries, that were important to the Shetland Islands economy between the 18^th and 20^th centuries.

The setting of the Diana fountain is largely unchanged and continues to contribute to its overall architectural interest of this memorial.

Historic interest:

Age and rarity

The memorial drinking fountain was unveiled in 1890 to commemorate the captain (who died during the expedition), the ship's surgeon (who survived) and to those remaining crew members who lost their lives during the 1866-67 whaling expedition of the Diana from Hull to Baffin Bay.

Memorials are often dedicated to significant and traumatic local events, often in diverse architectural forms and materials. However, they are a common building type of the 19^th and 20^th centuries. In this case, the memorial drinking fountain was dedicated 23 years after the event, in a style and form typical for its late-19^th century date.

Public water fountains were installed from the mid-19^th century to the earlier 20^th century to provide fresh drinking water to both people and animals. The commemorative drinking fountain dates from a time when street furniture was often used to commemorate events or people. Many drinking fountains have lost their original purpose and remain simply as decorative features in their streetscapes.

The Diana memorial fountain is not a rare example of its building type for its late-19^th century date, however it is one of a small number of other designated sites and structures symbolic of whaling in Scotland. Other examples include the whalebone arch at Bragar, Isle of Lewis (LB5767, listed at category B) and the remains of Bunavoneadar Whaling Station on the Isle of Harris (SM5362). In Lerwick, Hay's Dock and storehouse (LB37261, listed at category B) and The Store along Freefield Road (LB37275, listed at category B) are listed examples of structures related to the former whaling industry.

Social historical interest

Social historical interest is the way a building contributes to our understanding of how people lived in the past, and how our social and economic history is shown in a building and/or in its setting.

The fountain has special social historical interest for its association with Scotland's maritime and fishing history.

Shetland played a central role in the commercial whaling industry in the Arctic, and later the Antarctic fisheries, from the 18^th century and was an important part of the islands' social and economic history up until the 1960s. Whaling vessels from the mainland often stopped in Shetland en route to Greenland to complete their crews and to load provisions. There was a whaling boom from 1820 to around 1880 and the Shetland Islands supplied up to a quarter of the labour requirements of the Arctic fishery: equating to around 1,000 men sailing annually in the 1820s (Smith, p.67). Whaling started to decline towards the end of the 19^th century as the need for whale products decreased and as a result of over-fishing. The rise of petroleum and the discovery of alternative products, such as paraffin and kerosene for lighting, also contributed to the decline in the use of whale oil and other whale products.

Association with people or events of national importance

The fountain is a memorial to the return of the whaling ship, Diana, of Hull. It was erected in memory of Captain John Gravill and to Charles Edward Smith, the ship's surgeon, who cared for the crew of the Diana during a difficult whaling expedition to the west coast of Greenland in 1866-67.

Although of historical and cultural interest for its wider association with commercial Arctic whaling, an industry that was once prolific in Shetland and the United Kingdom more widely, the fountain itself does not have any close associations with a person or event of national importance.

Other Information

Charles Edward Smith kept a diary during the voyage which was later published as From the Deep of the Sea: An Epic of the Arctic, in 1922, and edited by his son.

References

Bibliography

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