Fitzalan Square
Fitzalan Square is a
This area of the city had been the
In 2017, Sheffield City Council announced plans to renovate the square.[1][2]
Location
The square is located in the city centre at 53°22′58″N 1°27′41″W / 53.38278°N 1.46139°W; to the south of the eastern end of High Street. It is rectangular in shape, formed by the staggered intersections of Flat Street and Haymarket with High Street from the south and north respectively. Commercial Street and Bakers Hill leave the square to the east. Norfolk Street used to intersect with Flat Street at the south-western corner of the square, but it was cut off from the square when Arundel Gate was constructed in 1968.
History
Fitzalan Square was created in 1881 when Market Street and its buildings were demolished; the early square had a substantial cab stand and clock. However, this was demolished in 1913 to make way for a bronze statue of
Sheffield's Head Post Office operated in the square for almost ninety years. Built in 1910 as an addition to the 1897 post office building on Flat Street, it closed in 1999, with the main post office moving to new premises within the
The Marples tragedy
The building at the corner of the square as it joins High Street was first occupied by a hotel in 1870; John Marples became the proprietor in 1886 and named the establishment the London Mart however it was always known locally as “The Marples”.
On the night of Thursday 12 December 1940, 280 German bombers attacked Sheffield in what has become known as the Sheffield Blitz. Their target was the steel works producing armaments in the east end of the city, however a mistake in navigation caused the city centre to become the main target. Fire bombs caused widespread panic, and many people took shelter in the Marples’ extensive cellars, believing they were safe under the robust seven-storey building. At 11:44 p.m. the Marples building took a direct hit from a bomb which plunged through the building and detonated just above the cellars, killing approximately 70 people and reducing the building to a 15-foot-high (4.6 m) pile of rubble. The next day seven men were dug out of the rubble still alive, as a small section of cellar roof had, amazingly, withstood the impact.[7]
The Marples site stood derelict until 1959 when the brewing company John Smith opened a new public house on the site, this time officially called “The Marples”. The pub closed in 2002 and was occupied by the Hein Gericke motorcycle clothing and accessory outlet until 2008. The building then stood empty for a few years but since 2012 the Marples building has been occupied by Cash Shop, a fair money lending and pawn broking company.[8]
Present day
Fitzalan Square received a facelift during the summer of 2003.
Sheffield Supertram stop
Fitzalan Square/Ponds Forge is a central station on the
. It is one of only three stations served by all four of the system’s lines.Preceding station | Sheffield Supertram
|
Following station | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Castle Square towards Middlewood |
Yellow Line | Hyde Park towards Meadowhall Interchange | ||
Castle Square towards Malin Bridge |
Blue Line | Sheffield Station/Sheffield Hallam University towards Halfway | ||
Castle Square towards Cathedral |
Purple Line | Sheffield Station/Sheffield Hallam University towards Herdings | ||
Castle Square towards Cathedral |
Tram/Train | Hyde Park towards Rotherham Parkgate
|
References
- ^ Council, Sheffield City. "Fitzalan Square improvements progressing | Sheffield Newsroom | Sheffield City Council". Retrieved 9 June 2020.
- ^ Media, Insider. "New masterplan for Sheffield's Fitzalan Square". Insider Media Ltd. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
- ^ Historic England (1973). "Statue of King Edward VII (1270597)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
- ^ Historic England (1973). "Head Post Office and attached railing (1254815)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
- ^ Historic England (1992). "The White Building (1270596)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
- ISBN 0-300-10585-1
- ^ "The Marples Tragedy (Sheffield Blitz, 1940)". BBC. Archived from the original on 14 December 2013. Retrieved 10 December 2013.
- ^ www.chrishobbs.com. Information on Marples tragedy from this site.
- ^ Sheffield City Council website. Archived 24 March 2007 at the Wayback Machine Details of 2003 facelift.