In the mid to late 19th century, there was a growing recognition of the negative effects of alcohol overuse on families and especially on children. In both the United Kingdom and the United States, the temperance movement took hold and spread their message of abstinence or moderation throughout society.
In the UK, the group was called The Band of Hope. With support from the Church of England, they worked to curb excessive drinking of alcohol and promote consumption of healthier beverages, with water at the top of the list.
From the Hope UK website: (
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"History of Hope UK
(formerly the United Kingdom Band of Hope Union)
The Temperance Movement
One of the first responses to the problems of excessive drinking in the 1800’s was the formation of temperance societies. These usually had a Christian base and were initially composed of people who took a pledge to abstain from spirits, e.g. whisky, and be moderate in their consumption of other alcoholic drinks. However, social and domestic problems caused by excessive consumption of alcohol in society at that time were considerable and there was controversy as to whether moderate drinking of any alcoholic beverage was sufficient to tackle the problem.
In 1832 the ‘Seven Men of Preston’, including Joseph Livesey, signed a pledge to totally abstain from intoxicating beverages. The idea spread and temperance societies sprang up all over Britain, encouraging people to help deal with the problem of alcoholism by saying that they would no longer drink intoxicating beverages. This was known as ‘signing the pledge’, as individuals were invited to sign a promise. This Movement was part of the Victorian Social Reform programme.
Beginning of the Band of Hope
In June 1847, Rev Jabez Tunnicliff visited a man who had once been a Sunday School teacher but was now a dying alcoholic. The man said to Mr Tunnicliff ‘I want you, if you think it worthwhile to say anything about me when I’m gone, to warn young men against the first glass’. Mr Tunnicliff reported this to the Leeds Temperance Society mentioning the subject of juvenile temperance work.
Nothing much was done about this until August 1847 when they invited Mrs Ann Jane Carlile to speak in Leeds at Day Schools, Sunday Schools and a meeting of local women. Mrs Carlile was an Irish lady and mother of seven children. She had become concerned about the amount of excessive drinking amongst children and the effect that adult drinking was having on them. During her time in Leeds several children and young people showed an interest in her talks and ‘signed the pledge’. An idea was then suggested for a special temperance group to be set up for children under 16. Its aims would be to teach children about Christianity and also the problems associated with drinking and to encourage them to live a healthy, alcohol-free lifestyle.
In November 1847 the first meeting of this group took place in Leeds. About 300 children attended, 200 of whom ‘signed the pledge’ for the first time, the rest having already done so. The group became known as the ‘Band of Hope’. The pledge of the Leeds Temperance Band of Hope was ‘I, the undersigned, do agree that I will not use intoxicating liquors as a beverage’.
At around the same time other groups were starting the same kind of children’s clubs and many of them took the name ‘Band of Hope’, together becoming the Band of Hope movement.
The clubs grew rapidly and, although co-operating in local ‘unions’, operated as separate groups. In London there were several clubs, some within walking distance of each other yet operating individually. It became clear that they could be more
effective if they worked together sharing resources, costs etc. and in 1855 the UK Band of Hope Union was formed with Stephen Shirley as the first Secretary.
The Band of Hope movement embraced all sorts of activities - it produced a children’s hymn book, wrote children’s songs, ran and started more children’s clubs (the essence of the work), held bazaars, produced booklets, leaflets, magic lantern slide shows etc., sent qualified medical men to give lectures in schools, held
competitions and festivals and crowned pageant queens every year.
In 1887 it had about 1½ million members out of 8 million young people in Britain of Band of Hope age. . . ."
This water fountain was designed to slake the thirst of Victorian visitors to Primrose Hill and Regent's Park by providing a free drink of clean, cool water. It was erected in memory of John Payne.
The historic plaque reads as follows:
"In Memory Of
JOSEPH PAYNE, ESQ.
Deputy-Assiatant Judge
A Zealous Total Abstainer
And a Fiathful Friend of
Bands of Hope
Died March 29, 1870
Erected by the Committee and
Friends of the United Kingdom
Bands of Hope Union"
A little digging led us to these excerpts and writings about Mr. paybe:
From the book Temperance Standard Bearers of the Nineteenth Century by Peter T. Winskill: (
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"PAYNE, JOSEPH, London -- He was an Assistant Judge of the Middlesex Circuit, a personal abstainer and an able advocate of the cause for a number of years. Died suddenly in March 1870, aged 72 years."