Walter Fountain

The Walter Fountain once stood at the crossing of Greyfriar Gate and Lister Gate in Nottingham. Designed by Richard Charles Sutton, it was built in 1866 to honour John Walter, the town’s MP. The Corporation of Nottingham supplied the site and water, while John Walter himself paid for the work. The foundation stone was laid in October 1865 by the Mayor, William Page. The fountain was opened the following summer by the same mayor. Described in the Illustrated London News as a Gothic structure, the fountain rose in four stages to a height of twelve metres. Its octagonal base measured nearly four metres across. Four polished granite basins were set into the lower stage, while the other sides carried inscriptions. Above two of the basins were recessed white-marble medallions of John Walter, framed by carved canopies. The first stage was surrounded by a trefoil parapet, and each of the eight compartments ended in gablets with finials. The second stage featured pointed arches filled with tracery and shields bearing the town’s arms. Red Mansfield stone shafts rose from this level, capped with carved stonework. The third stage narrowed further, its buttresses topped with smaller pinnacles. At the top, an ornamental cross crowned the structure. A flight of octagonal steps led up to the fountain’s base. In 1950, part of the masonry collapsed and the fountain was demolished shortly after.