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Early in the year of 1890 the Town Council of South Shields decided that there was a need for a gentleman's public urinal in the Westoe area of the town. The Town Improvement and Sanitary Committee submitted the following report.
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Click thumbnail for larger image
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COUNTY BOROUGH OF SOUTH SHIELDS
REPORT OF THE TOWN IMPROVEMENT COMMITTEE, MADE TO THE COUNCIL ON THE 1st DAY OF OCTOBER 1890.
URINAL NEAR WESTOE LANE BRIDGE.
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The surveyor reported to us as follows;
It would be a great public convenience if the Whitburn Coal Co. would allow us to place a good Urinal at the end of the curved wing wall of the Bridge in Chichester Road, as shown on the plan produced, upon similar terms charged to us by the N. E. Railway Co.
There is a great need for such an erection about there and I do not know of a more suitable site.
( perhaps an unfortunate choice of words )
Resolved ; That application be made to the Whitburn Coal Co. for their consent to the Urinal being placed on the site suggested by the surveyor.
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And so the legend began. There is no record to say when the new facility became open to the public or if it had an official opening.
At that time the Westoe area of the town was densely populated with rows upon rows of two up and two down terraced houses, inhabited mostly by miners and their families. There were four working collieries in and around the town at that time employing thousands of coal miners, also there was an abundance of public houses and working men's clubs to facilitate their needs, so the new urinal was to be well used.
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Eighty two years later this public toilet gave inspiration to artist and sculptor Bob Olley a native of South Shields, he was born 1940 within spitting distance of the urinal. He recalls memories of his childhood, when men always seemed to wear heavy dark clothing, cloth caps and white mufflers and frequented the many clubs and bars in the vicinity.
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When closing time came they would stand around, solving the worlds problems until the need to relieve themselves came upon them and it was then that the urinal reached it's full potential and there was often a queue of fidgeting men waiting to use it.
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On the cement rendered walls witty graffiti covered every inch of space while the acrid pong from the porcelain stalls was kept at bay by the automatic ball cock flush struggling to cleanse the trough that was permanently choked with fag ends and tram tickets.
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His painting is based on these observations. "Admittedly" he says "I used some artistic licence by adding two more stalls because I found the positions of the pee'ers interesting.'
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