Memorial

Bethnal Green Underground Station Civilian disaster of 1943 (Stairway to Heaven)

Bethnal Green Stairway to Heaven 1

Source: Sandra Scotting

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Current Location

Bethnal Green Underground Station, Bethnal Green Road, Bethnal Green, Tower Hamlets, Greater London, E2 0EL, England

TQ 34973 82729

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Type of Memorial: Other structure
WMR Reference Number: 70373
Description: Slanting sculpture that is fixed above the ground that sits above a long horizontal concrete plinth that has one sharp alternation in direction before rising up to the aerial suspended sculpture. The vertical plinth has plaques embedded that list all of the victim's full names and ages. There are also individual plaques detailing what happened on that fateful night from various primary voices of members of the public who were there that fateful night. The top sculpture is made of sustainable teak, to represent the 19 steps on which those people died. The surnames of the victims are carved in large letters all around the sides and inside the 'roof' of the sculpture there are 173 angled cones that allow sunlight to shine through (designed with artistic interpretation to embody the lives lost). When looking up into the hollowed out void the teak interior is exactly the exactly the same dimension in which 300-400 people were trapped on the night of the disaster. the memorial is surrounded by paving stones that line up exactly with the steps leading into the station shelter where the deaths tragically occurred. There is a small uplight to replicate the 25 watt bulb that was the only source of light in the tube shelter entrance on the night of the disaster.
Inscription: Individual plaques with personal commemorations to the individuals who lost their lives during the stampede and panic.

Maker(s): Harry Paticas, Architect
Coniston Ltd, Builder
Costs: c. £500,000
Sponsor Type: public
Sponsored By: London Borough of Tower Hamlets; London Underground, many corporate and personal donors. Organised by the Stairway to Heaven Memorial Trust.
Additional Cost/Sponsorship Information: Estimated cost of £500,000 relates to design and construction.