Victoria Pier 1d Toll

[malj1]

Hull Corporation Pier,  The ferry sailed from the adjacent Victoria Pier. Victoria Pier 1d Toll; Brass, 33mm. Blank reverse.

Hull Corporation Pier, first constructed in 1810 was parallel to the mainland but not directly connected to it, it was converted to a "T" shaped pier in 1847, used as the terminus of the Hull to New Holland ferry, initially run by the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway (MS&LR), later by the LNER and British Rail, until the service ended in 1981 due to the opening of the Humber Bridge. It was renamed Victoria Pier in 1854. A railway booking office latterly named Hull Victoria Pier was established here c.?1849 by the MS&LR, and closed on 25 June 1981 with the cessation of the ferry service. The pier has been altered a number of times during its existence, a floating pontoon was added in 1877, removed in 1980; an upper Promenade was added in 1882, and removed in the mid 20th century; as of 2005 the primary wooden structure is "L" shaped.

To the west of Victoria Pier were the "L" shaped piers enclosing the Humber Dock basin, The West Pier became defunct in the 19th century, the land to the west being reclaimed from the Humber to form Island Wharf. The East Pier was a wooden structure, since the 1920s known as the Minerva Pier; it was replaced by a steel walled pier in the latter part of the 20th century.....

Two other ferries over the River Hull are known. By 1823 a ferry existed from Garrison pier to the neighbourhood of Blackfriargate, near the mouth of the river. It was still in existence in 1856 but was presumably replaced by South Bridge. A ferry known as 'the Brewhouse Wrack' is said to have operated in the 19th century between the Groves and Wincolmlee, serving in particular the cotton mills in the area....

...last ferry may have been established about 1825 and consisted simply of a 'gold duster', or rowing-boat. It expanded rapidly, however, receiving abundant public support during Acland's agitation. By 1832 a steamboat, the Magna Carta, was making three crossings to Hull daily, with extra crossings on market-days...
....The proprietors of the New Holland ferry bought out the Barrow ferry although they allowed it to operate as before. In 1836 the London mails to Hull were transferred from the Barton to the New Holland ferry. In 1845 it was acquired by the Great Grimsby and Sheffield Junction Railway, and in 1846 it was taken over by the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway. The Barton ferry continued to provide four crossings daily until 1851, but was then discontinued. An attempt to revive it in 1856 proved abortive. The New Holland ferry was still operated by British Railways in 1965...

....In 1847 the ferry pier was joined to the mainland by a platform, and thereafter landings were made on the river side of the pier. In 1877 a floating pontoon was attached to the pier, then known as the Victoria Pier. The present pontoon landing-stage was erected between 1934 and 1936.....

  Source.

[Kushi]

Very interesting background. Have you been able to confirm that the token was from Hull? There were undoubtedly more than one Victoria Pier.

Is it known if the token was for entrance to the pier and/or for passage on the ferry?

[malj1]

The floating pontoon attached to the pier, then known as the Victoria Pier was for access to the ferry, so it is reasonable to assume the payment was just for this and would deter other unwanted people.
The token was present in the Montague Guest collection which was presented to the British Museum in 1907 so predates this; see image with mention of another in bronze.

The other Victoria Pier was at Colwyn Bay, North Wales, and opened in 1900 leaving little time for Montague Guest to acquire an example before his death in 1909 if indeed it was from here, he had already presented his collection two years previously on condition a catalogue was produced; this eventually occurred in 1930.

[malj1]

Very interesting background. Have you been able to confirm that the token was from Hull? There were undoubtedly more than one Victoria Pier.

Is it known if the token was for entrance to the pier and/or for passage on the ferry?

Here is an independent answer to the question. [unless of course he took the info from here!]

[Kushi]

Can we assume this is similar to a railroad depot platform ticket? It allows access to the pier, but not passage on the ferry.

[malj1]

It does appear to be only a toll for using the pier which as you say would be similar to a platform ticket. We really need to find the cost of the ferry ride to be sure.

[Figleaf]

Another possibility is that the token was for taking along a bicycle or a dog cart or something similar.

Peter

[andyg]

or for fishing from the pier

[redwine]

or for fishing from the pier

I used to go fishing off the jetty of the local pier.  You had to pay to enter the pier, sadly in my day you didn't get a token