Clock Tower in Wednesbury Market Place

A clock tower built in 1911 to commemorate the coronation of George V to designs by Charles William Davies Joynson (1862-1943).

MATERIALS: red brick and sandstone.

PLAN: the clock tower has a square base of around five by five metres.

EXTERIOR: the tower is four sided, with elevations facing north-east, south-east, south-west and north-west. The tower has a lower section of thin bricks in Flemish Bond, and a Baroque style upper section in stone. It stands on three square stone steps, the upper two of which have rounded extensions to the centres of each of their four sides.

The brick portion of the tower has a moulded stone skirting to its base. Towards its top, each face of the brick section has a single, centrally located narrow arrow-slit opening below a lintel of three vertical rubbed bricks. There is a narrow door in the south-west face of the tower. Over the door is a stone segmental pediment with a single keystone, supported by scrolled bracket corbels to either side of the door head.

A stone plaque in the north-western brick face is inscribed: ‘THIS CLOCK TOWER / was built by Public Subscription / to commemorate the CORONATION of / HIS MAJESTY KING GEORGE V, / and the Foundation Stone was laid / on 22nd June, 1911, by / COUNCILLOR EDWIN JAMES HUNT, J.P. / MAYOR OF WEDNESBURY. / THOS. JONES, TOWN CLERK. C.W.D. JOYNSON, ARCHITECT. SUMMERHILL & JELLYMAN builders.

The brick section is separated from the stone section by a stone cornice and frieze which runs continuously across all four faces. On each face, in the centre of the frieze is a stone shield flanked by carved foliage. The south-west and north-east facing shields bear the coat of arms of Wednesbury town; they depict two lions and the motto ‘ARTE, MARTE, VIGORE’. The north-western shield is carved with the initials ‘GR V’ (for King George V) beneath a crown, and the initial ‘M’ (for Queen Mary) beneath a crown decorates the south-eastern shield.

Above the cornice dividing brick and stone sections, a pair of Ionic columns is set diagonally to each corner. At the feet of each pair of columns is a globe shaped lamp on an iron base. Between the columns on each side of the monument is a clock face surrounded by carved festoons. A cornice with blank frieze sits on top of the columns, it projects out over the paired columns and forms the base for a dome above. The dome has a carved band separating its coffered top part from a rusticated lower portion. A finial tops the dome.