Iconic siren removed as new jeweller takes over popular Sheffield city centre business
An iconic piece of history has been removed in Sheffield City Centre
A siren that dates back more than 150 years has been removed from a city shop.
The Star visited where the siren was located, at Loupe Jewellers, on Thursday (September 10) to find that no alarm was heard at 1pm.
Since 1874, when Harris Leon Brown was trying to market his jewellers H. L. Brown - then on Angel Street - he came up with the ‘1 O’Clock Time Signal’.
For the subsequent 150 years the siren has rung through the city centre, becoming a staple of the business even when it moved premises to Barker’s Pool in the 1980s.
However, city centre visitors may have recently noticed that the iconic piece of Sheffield history has been removed.
H. L. Brown was bought out and rebranded as ‘Loupe’ in August this year.
The siren remained in-situ during renovation works however has been removed since the re-opening on August 3.
Loupe has said the siren has been given back to H. L. Brown, who still run stores in Doncaster, Lincoln and York.
“As part of the refurbishment, and after much consideration, the building’s iconic one o’clock siren was carefully removed and gifted to H.L. Brown in recognition of the jeweller’s role in establishing Sheffield’s public time signal tradition in the 19th century,” a spokesperson added.
“We know that the siren holds a special place in the city, having become a familiar daily sound for many, and the decision to remove it was not taken lightly.
“By returning the siren to H.L. Brown, Loupe is proud to honour an important part of the city’s heritage while ensuring this unique piece of Sheffield history remains connected to the business that first made it a cherished part of the city’s identity.”
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