In the eighteenth century the area immediately to the east of Saint Paul's Church was a warren of insanitary alleyways which wove between crowded shops and houses. The Bedford Improvement Act of 1803 led to the demolition of a large section of the area and the construction of new red brick buildings with slate roofs, which covered market stalls and can be seen in Thomas Fisher's watercolour above. The buildings stood until 1849, when they were pulled down to make space for a Corn Exchange. The Corn Exchange became the Floral Hall, which existed on the site until 1904 when the area was once again cleared, this time to be occupied by an open-air market. The photograph above shows the fountain which stood south of the Hall from 1870 - 1880. The steps remain, but they now lead to the base of the Howard statue, designed by Alfred Gilbert and unveiled in 1894.