Gateposts to Nowhere, Retired Urinal

I took this photo because of the rather grandiose gateposts that stand in lonely splendour by the footpath near Suggitt’s bridge. These have always intrigued me for they seem far too well-dressed for their rural setting, yet the Ordnance Survey 25” map from 1894 offers no hint for such ostentation. They remain a mystery, guarding nothing but, what was then, a small field.

In the background, we can see a relic of far more practical intent: the village’s last surviving Victorian urinal. The Parish Council first tackled the burning issue of providing urinals in 1896, purchasing three cast iron ones six years later. Each cost £13 16s delivered to Great Ayton railway station—but then a hot debate began as to where to put them. Sounds like a well-thought-out plan. The elite of Great Ayton refused to even cast a glance from their grand houses. This one, originally placed at the junction of Station Road and Little Ayton Lane, was relocated in 1998 when progress, in the form of the mini-roundabout, deemed it inconvenient.

Now Grade II listed and no longer in use, the urinal stands as a monument to the bodily needs of Victorian men, whose relief has been immortalised in iron. The ladies, one imagines, were left to the mercy of nature and a discreet hedge.