Status: Removed
A recent post by the fine folk at Heritage Unlocked about the late and long-lamented Stewart Park Conservatory in Marton started me thinking about the fountain photographed above.
The conservatory was, until its demolition, the jewel of the park. A tropical escape from the north-eastern chill and an opportunity to see unusual flora and fauna such as banana trees, exotic birds, and apparently even a few monkeys (which seem to be a recurring theme here at North East Statues). I’m not a fan of dragging these animals out of their native climates, but a visit to the hothouse was an eye opener for generations of Teessiders.
The sea-lion fountain (at least I think it’s a sea-lion and not a seal. I may be embarrassingly wrong so if there are any amateur marine-biologists on here feel free to correct me) was one of the centrepieces of the building, and I was lucky enough to have regular contributor (and former Development Manager at Middlesbrough Council) Tony Duggan providing me with more information about this one.
Created by the Everard Brothers firm who were based at Scotch Corner, the fountain was salvaged when the conservatory was demolished in the mid-90s. According to Tony, that means it could well have ended up in someone’s back garden. At this point I’d like to point out that we’re very discreet at North East Statues and if anyone has more info, we won’t go blabbing.
I’m not quite sure from the photo whether it was a bronze or not, or whether it was specially made or from a catalogue. Once again, anything anyone knows about this is gratefully accepted. You can contact us via the comments or northeaststatues@gmail.com
Photos from Middlesbrough Libraries.
North East Statues 