THE Bitterne Park Triangle clock tower is one of Southampton's best known landmarks that has stood proudly in the city since the 1880s.

There was quite a stir in Southampton’s High Street and Above Bar exactly one hundred and twenty-six years ago, at noon on December 9, 1889, when a dignified mayoral procession made its way through the watching crowds at the start of a special ceremony.

The procession solemnly set off walking passed the churches of Holy Rood, St. Lawrence and All Saints, as well as three hotels, the Dolphin, the Star and the Crown, before moving through the Bargate and into Above Bar where the procession would convene off Palmerston Park at the junction with New Road where the waiting crowds would be rewarded with the first view of the shining new noble clock tower.

The monument, with its clock faces and water fountains and drinking troughs for animals, was designed by Kelway-Pope and cost £1,000 to build. It was bequeathed to Southampton by the late, Mrs Henrietta Bellenden Sayers, who always “cared for man and beast’’ and, at the time of its unveiling, it served a real need in those far off days when horses were still familiar sights on local streets.

After a residency of 45 years in its original location in Above Bar it was then moved to its present site in 1934 when roadworks were being carried out in the city centre.