Memorial to John Whitaker
The Memorial to John Whitaker is in Roe Street,
History
John Whitaker (1772–1820) was an alderman of
The fiftieth anniversary of the foundation of the school was celebrated on 6 May 1846 by processions, speeches, feasting and unveiling a memorial to Whitaker in the forecourt of the school; the sculptor was Alfred Gatley.[2] Since the closure of the school, the building has been converted to become Macclesfield Heritage Centre.[3] There was a previous memorial to Whitaker, which was created by Samuel Franceys and Son of Liverpool and was placed in the Sunday School in 1821. It consists of a bust of Whitaker surrounded by grieving scholars. This memorial is now in the auditorium of the Heritage Centre.[2][3]
Description
The memorial is constructed in stone and marble, and stands about 9 metres (30 ft) high.
- AS
- A TRIBUTE
- OF VENERATION AND ESTEEM,
- FOR THE PRIVATE AND PUBLIC BENEVOLENCE
- OF
- JOHN WHITAKER,
- THE FOUNDER,
- THIS MONUMENT IS ERECTED
- BY THE
- VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS
- OF A
- GRATEFUL POSTERITY,
- THE
- SIXTH DAY OF MAY, 1846,
- BEING
- THE FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF
- THE ESTABLISHMENT
- OF THIS SUNDAY SCHOOL
Appraisal
The monument was designated as a Grade II listed building on 28 October 1994.[5] Grade II is the lowest of the three grades of listing and is applied to "buildings of national importance and special interest".[6] In the Public Sculpture of Britain series, Morris and Roberts comment that it "has the design of a typical classicist church monument enlarged for an outside location".[2] The Sunday School (now the Heritage Centre) established by Whitaker is designated as a Grade II* listed building.[7] Grade II* is the middle of the three grades and is granted to "particularly important buildings of more than special interest".[6]
References
Citations
- ^ a b Morris & Roberts (2012), pp. 138–139
- ^ a b c Morris & Roberts (2012), p. 139
- ^ a b Hartwell et al. (2011), p. 458
- ^ a b Morris & Roberts (2012), p. 138
- ^ a b Historic England & 1290576.
- ^ a b Historic England
- ^ Historic England & 1206950
Sources
- Historic England, Listed Buildings, retrieved 3 April 2015
- Hartwell, Clare; Hyde, Matthew; ISBN 978-0-300-17043-6
- Morris, Edward; Roberts, Emma (2012), Public Sculpture of Cheshire and Merseyside (excluding Liverpool), Public Sculpture of Britain, vol. 15, Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, ISBN 978-1-84631-492-6
- Historic England, "Memorial outside Sunday School (1290576)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 12 January 2014
- Historic England, "Macclesfield Sunday School (Macclesfield Heritage Centre) (1206950)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 12 January 2014