Drinking fountain in Esher, Surrey, with a rectangular step below, and a horse trough lower down by the main through road, dating from 1877. This Grade II listed structure is described in its listing text as a "[s]tone pylon circa 1877," with a "[m]arble bowl attached to north side with bronze lion's head spout above and step with plinth." The iron railings make it more of a feature, and also serve as a safety measure, especially where they are raised near the busy thoroughfare.
Closer view, showing the inscription.
The Aberdeen granite, marble and bronze amenity stands at the top of Esher High Street in Surrey, near the edge of the grassy bank by the road from London to Portsmouth. This road soon afterwards reaches Claremont, where young Princess Alexandrina ("Drina") Victoria often stayed as a child with her uncle Leopold. On her girlhood visits to him the young princess would worship in the nearby church of St George's, just a two-minute walk from the fountain.
Having passed this way often, and having very much enjoyed her visits here, Queen Victoria had a particular fondness for the little Surrey town, and offered to donate this stone drinking fountain to the parish when water from the nearby iron pump (now isolated on the next traffic island) was declared unfit to drink. The Architect of 1877 noted that the proposal was "gratefully accepted by the Vestry" ("General," 16). The addition of a horse trough was typical of the animal-loving Queen.
The town's special relationship with the monarch would later be marked by Esher's Diamond Jubilee Memorial, which takes the form of the raised statue of Britannia seen on the left of the close-up, which has an oval plaque with a bas-relief of Victoria's head on the pedestal. There are other connections here: the sculptor of the memorial, Francis Williamson (and, for a short while, the novelist George Meredith), lived at a house at the top of the bank, just above the drinking fountain.
Photographs 2006 and 2025 by Jacqueline Banerjee. These images may be used without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you credit the photographer and link your document to the Victorian Web or cite it in a print document. [Click on the images to enlarge them.]
Bibliography
"Drinking Fountain and surrounding railings opposite No.72." Historic England. Web. 16 November 2025.
"General." The Architect. Vol. 17 (6 January 1877): 16. Google Books, free ebook.
Created 28 April 2007
Last modified 16 November 2025