Pacific Exchange

Terracotta panel on the Pacific Exchange building in Hull. The building accommodated brokers trading in oil seed because by the end of the 19th Century Hull had become the largest seed crushing area in the country. The architect for the building was B.S. Jacobs of Bowl Alley Lane, Hull. Above the lower left window is this shield with 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 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.