Pacific Exchange

By the end of the 19th Century Hull had become the largest seed crushing area in the country. The business was undertaken by brokers travelling about office to office that was inefficient and time consuming. It was decided that an exchange was needed for the improvement of business. A commission was given to B.S. Jacobs of Bowl Alley Lane, Hull. The building was Renaissance Revival style with Tudor style mullioned windows and a mahogany paneled entrance hall and trading floor. At the gable top is the Hull City emblem of three crowns and above the lower left window is a date of 1899. However the building was not open for trading until 1901. The 1899 could well be from when the Pacific Club was formed. I think the traders had to belong the club to make use of the trading floor.

The front section and entrance hall were completed first and it wasn't until 1909 that the building was extended through to the River Hull at the back. In the end the building contained trading hall, corn trade riverside board room, four floors of kitchens, offices, toilets and stores.

The Exchange was called the Pacific it seems purely because London had the Baltic and Liverpool had the Atlantic Exchanges! Millers, seed crushers, merchants and brokers packed the trading floor, up to a hundred at a time. Traders on the floor wore their hats and none traders had to remove them. When telephones were introduced offers would come from London to 15 trunk phone boxes on one wall along with two others for local calls.

The building is now divided into offices including those of the City of Culture and the Humberside Police Authority.