Almost lost at the far end of Fitzroy Street – a miniature St Kilda icon, and a reminder of days long gone – sits the not-very-well-known Isaac Jacobs drinking fountain.
It’s a nice piece of granite stonemasonry, erected in 1909, donated by the philanthropist Isaac Jacobs to commemorate … we don’t really know what.*
Providing safe public drinking water, at that time, was a serious public service. One reason so much beer and spirits were consumed back then was that they were often safer than any available water.
The fountain stood by the corner entrance of Albert Park at St Kilda Junction – in the days St Kilda Junction had pedestrian traffic.
Its domed top is a mini-model in stone of the majestic Byzantine dome of the great 1906 St Kilda Sea Baths (built just three years earlier, destroyed by fire in 1925).
Once a tiny foretaste of St Kilda Beach’s architectural fantasy land, today still standing quietly at its front gate.
* Two possible clues: a monogram “AJ” carved into the south side of the base (just above the doggy watering hole?); and a dedication plaque dated 1 December 1909 — the exact same day as Isaac’s wife Annie Jacobs died.
