| Chatham Town Hall | |
|---|---|
 Chatham Town Hall | |
| Location | Chatham, Kent |
| Coordinates | 51°23′06″N0°31′33″E / 51.3851°N 0.5258°E |
| Built | 1900 |
| Architect | George Edward Bond |
| Architectural style(s) | Renaissance style |
Listed Building – Grade II | |
| Designated | 1 June 1990 |
| Reference no. | 1268228 |
  Location of Chatham Town Hall in Kent | |
Chatham Town Hall is a municipal building in Dock Road in Chatham, Kent, England. The town hall, which was the headquarters of Chatham Borough Council, is a Grade II listed building. [1]
Following the incorporation of Chatham as a municipal borough on 10 December 1890, [2] civic leaders decided to procure a dedicated town hall: the site they selected was a plot of vacant land, which was owned by the War Office, located just to the south east of what was then a military storehouse. [3] [4]
The site was acquired and construction of the new building started in 1898. [5] It was designed by George Edward Bond in the Renaissance style and opened on 23 January 1900 by Lord Rosebery. [1] [6] The design involved an asymmetrical main frontage with five bays facing onto Dock Road; the central section of three bays, which slightly projected forward, featured four round headed widows on the ground floor, the borough coat of arms with three sash windows above on the first floor, a large round headed window on the second floor and a pediment containing a carving with the year "1899" above. [1] At roof level the architect erected figures depicting justice, Britannia, agriculture and music. [7] The section of three bays on the left, on the corner with Barrier Road, featured round headed doorways on the ground floor, a loggia with round headed openings on the first floor, sash windows on the second floor, flanked by Corinthian order columns which spanned the second and third floors, and a parapet above. [1] Beyond that, there was a three-stage clock tower with a domed cupola; [1] it originally housed an hour-striking clock by Potts & Sons (though this was replaced by an electric mechanism in the 1930s). [8]
The principal rooms, which were on the first floor, were the mayor's parlour (on the left of the building), the council chamber (on the left of the building at the rear) and a large assembly hall with a proscenium arch (on the right of the building). [1] [9] [10] In the 1930s, in anticipation of the Second World War, the local civil defence headquarters was established in the basement of the building. [11] The town hall was the venue for various scenes in the satirical comedy film, Left Right and Centre , starring Ian Carmichael, in 1959. [12] In 1965, the building was used in the opening sequence of nuclear war docudrama The War Game. [13]
The town hall served as the headquarters of Chatham Borough Council but ceased to be the local seat of government when the enlarged Medway Borough Council was formed in 1974 with its eventual headquarters at Gun Wharf. [14] With the promotional motto "Putting The Arts Back Into The Medway", the town hall became the Medway Arts Centre in May 1987. [15] It hosted concerts by rock bands such as My Bloody Valentine in January 1988 [16] and went on to become the Brook Theatre, with a focus on children's theatre productions, in April 1997. [17]
Kent is a county in the South East England region, the closest county to continental Europe. It borders Essex across the entire estuary of the River Thames to the north; the French department of Pas-de-Calais across the Strait of Dover to the south-east; East Sussex to the south-west; Surrey to the west and Greater London to the north-west. The county town is Maidstone.
Chatham is a town within the Medway unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Kent, England. The town forms a conurbation with neighbouring towns Gillingham, Rochester, Strood and Rainham. In 2020 it had a population of 80,596.
Rochester is a town in the unitary authority of Medway, in Kent, England. It is at the lowest bridging point of the River Medway, about 30 miles (50 km) from London. The town forms a conurbation with neighbouring towns Chatham, Rainham, Strood and Gillingham. Rochester was a city until losing its status as one in 1998 following the forming of Medway and failing to protect its status as a city. There have been ongoing campaigns to reinstate the city status for Rochester. In 2011 it had a population of 62,982.
Medway is a local government district with borough status in the ceremonial county of Kent, South East England. Its council, Medway Council, is a unitary authority, being a district council which also performs the functions of a county council; it is independent from Kent County Council. The borough had a population of 278,016 in 2019. It was formed in 1998 by merging the boroughs of Rochester-upon-Medway and Gillingham. The borough contains the towns of Chatham, Gillingham, Rainham, Rochester and Strood, which are collectively known as the Medway Towns.
Gillingham is a town in the unitary authority area of Medway, in the ceremonial county of Kent, England. The town forms a conurbation with neighbouring towns Chatham, Rochester, Strood and Rainham. It is also the largest town in the borough of Medway. In 2020 it had a population of 108,785.
The Hazlitt Theatre and Exchange Studio, also known as the Hazlitt Arts Centre, is a theatre complex in Earl Street in Maidstone, Kent, England. The oldest part of the complex, which is now used as a shopping complex on the ground floor, and as a theatre venue known as the "Exchange Studio" on the first floor, is a Grade II listed building.
Medway Council is the local authority of Medway, a local government district in the ceremonial county of Kent, England. The council is a unitary authority, being a district council which also performs the functions of a county council; it is independent from Kent County Council. The council was created on 1 April 1998 and replaced Rochester-upon-Medway City Council and Gillingham Borough Council.
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Tenterden Town Hall is a municipal building in the High Street in Tenterden, Kent, England. The structure, which is the meeting place of Tenterden Town Council, is a Grade II listed building.
Sunderland Town hall was a municipal building in the Fawcett Street in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England. It was the headquarters of Sunderland Borough Council until November 1970.