Newtownstewart Town Hall

Newtownstewart Town Hall
Newtownstewart Town Hall
Location	Townhall Street, Newtownstewart
Coordinates	54°43′08″N7°22′38″W / 54.7188°N 7.3772°W / 54.7188; -7.3772
Built	1880
Architectural style(s)	Italianate style
Listed Building – Grade B2
Official name	7 Townhall Street, Newtownstewart, County Tyrone
Designated	12 March 1986
Reference no.	HB 10/04/045 B
Shown in Northern Ireland

Newtownstewart Town Hall is a municipal structure in Townhall Street, Newtownstewart, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. The structure, which has been converted for use by the local amateur boxing club, is a Grade B2 listed building. ^[1]

History

The first building on the site was the home of Major Jones Crawford who saw action with the 12th (East Suffolk) Regiment of Foot at the Siege of Seringapatam in Southern India in 1799 during the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War. ^{[1] [2] [3]} In 1879, the house was demolished and the site redeveloped by a local ironmonger, Bernard Gillespie, who saw an opportunity to establish a municipal building in the town. ^{[1] [4]}

The new building was designed in the Italianate style, built in brick with a stucco finish and was completed in 1880. ^{[1] [5]} The design involved a symmetrical main frontage with three bays facing onto Townhall Street; the ground floor was fenestrated by a central square-headed casement window which was flanked by openings containing recessed doorways with rectangular fanlights on either side. The first floor featured a prominent Venetian window incorporating pilasters and hood moulds. Below the window was a panel inscribed with the words "Town Hall" in raised lettering, whilst in the open gable above there was an oculus inscribed with the works "Erected by B. Gillespie 1880". ^[1] At that time, Gillespie's name also appeared on a plate above one of the doors. ^[6]

The building became the venue for the regular petty session hearings: cases heard by the magistrates during these hearings included a trial in 1919, when several individuals were charged with attacking two British soldiers in the village of Ardstraw. ^[7] After the First World War, the building was acquired by the Gallagher family: it was used for concerts, dances and theatrical performances for much of the 20th century although the judicial use of the building ended in 1964 when petty session hearings in Newtownstewart were abolished. ^[8]

After the building became the home of the Two Castles Amateur Boxing Club in 2012, ^{[9] [10]} extensive refurbishment works were carried out to update the building: these works included the installation of new toilets, changing rooms and kitchen facilities. ^[11]

References

1. "7 Townhall Street, Newtownstewart, Co. Tyrone (HB10/04/045 B)". Department for Communities. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
2. "Provincial Directory". Pigot and Co. 1824. p. 414. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
3. Memorial to Major Crawford Jones (1773–1839) in the Church of Ardstraw St Eugene in Newtownstewart.
4. "Belfast and Ulster Towns Directory". 2010. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
5. Rowan, Alistair (1979). North West Ulster: The Counties of London Derry, Donegal, Fermanagh and Tyrone (Buildings of Ireland Series). Yale University Press. p. 443. ISBN   978-0300096675.
6. Dunbar, Billy (1987). Newtownstewart Remembered. Strule Press. p. 122.
7. "Soldiers and Civilians Assault near Ardstraw: case at petty sessions" (PDF). Strabane Chronicle. 25 January 1919. p. 404. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
8. "Summary Jurisdiction: Petty Sessions Districts and Times" (PDF). UK Government. p. 630. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
9. "Ulster high performance stars make the most of Russia trip". The Irish News. 10 May 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2022. Bishop Kelly in Eskra, and followed his coach to Newtownstewart when Two Castles opened its doors in the old town hall four years ago.
10. "Jude crowned Flyweight Elite champion". Strabane Weekly News. 29 November 2019. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
11. "Derg Local Growth Plan" (PDF). Derry City & Strabane District Council. 1 September 2019. p. 14. Retrieved 25 June 2022.