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"From 1987, when I first picked up a mallet and chisel, the Black Mary statue was mine."
That's what Marcia Bennett-Male, the UK's only Black female stonemason, tells Londonist about her statue of forgotten Londoner, Mary Woolaston, newly unveiled at Calthorpe Community Garden, on Gray's Inn Road near King's Cross.
Woolaston was said to have been a Black woman who, in the late 17th century, was the keeper of a well here, known for its chalybeate waters, residing in "a rude circular stone hut" next to the water source. In particular it's believed soldiers encamped nearby would have taken advantage of the restorative waters. The spot, now occupied by the gardens, became known as 'Black Mary's Hole'.
On Saturday 28 June 2025, Bennett-Male's life-sized statue of Woolaston was unveiled, surrounded by a garden and water feature created by members of the Calthorpe Community. To coincide with the unveiling, a Black Mary's Pleasure Garden Festival was hosted — we hope, the first of an annual tradition.
Mary Woolaston's is one of precious few statues of Black women in the capital, others including Mary Seacole, Stockwell's Bronze Woman, and Reaching Out, Thomas J Price's sculpture of a woman on her phone, in Stratford.
Says the Black Mary Project Lead Gaylene Gould, "Public healing spaces, like the well Mary is said to have kept at King's Cross, are needed now more than ever. These spaces of public healing are crucial sites of community, bringing us together and encouraging connection in an age of increasing disconnection and loneliness."
Adds Bennett-Male: "I am thrilled to have been introduced to Mary. We're friends."
From autumn 2025, a new Mary Woolaston Healing Tour will continue to teach people more about Mary and the history of the King's Cross healing wells.
The statue of Mary Woolaston can be seen during opening hours at the Calthorpe Community Garden, which is open daily.
