St Andrews Town Hall

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St Andrews Town Hall
St Andrews Town Hall (geograph 5884941).jpg
St Andrews Town Hall
LocationSouth Street, St Andrews
Coordinates 56°20′21″N2°47′43″W / 56.3391°N 2.7954°W / 56.3391; -2.7954 Coordinates: 56°20′21″N2°47′43″W / 56.3391°N 2.7954°W / 56.3391; -2.7954
Built1862
ArchitectJames Anderson Hamilton
Architectural style(s) Scottish baronial style
Listed Building – Category B
Official nameTown Hall, South Street and Queen's Gardens
Designated23 February 1971
Reference no.LB40695
Fife UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Shown in Fife

St Andrews Town Hall is a municipal structure in South Street, St Andrews, Fife, Scotland. The structure, which is the meeting place of the Royal Burgh of St Andrews Community Council, is a Category B listed building. [1]

Contents

History

The mosaic created by three Polish servicemen Polish Soldier - geograph.org.uk - 1041493.jpg
The mosaic created by three Polish servicemen

The first municipal building in the town was a medieval tolbooth in the centre of Market Street which dated back to the 12th century. [2] The building was arcaded on the ground floor, so markets could be held, with an assembly room on the first floor; an extra storey was added in 1817, but, after the building became an impediment to traffic, it was demolished in 1862. [2] The burgh leaders decided to procure a new burgh hall: the site they chose in South Street was occupied by a row of residential properties. [3]

Construction work on the new building started in 1858. [4] It was designed by James Anderson Hamilton in the Scottish baronial style, built in rubble masonry by John M'Intosh [5] and was completed in 1862. [4] The design involved an asymmetrical main frontage facing onto South Street; it featured a bartizan in the northeast corner, a central six-light mullioned window on the first floor and a central stepped gable containing a single sash window. There was a prominent corbelled turret with a conical roof in the northwest corner. [1] It originally extended for seven bays along Queen's Gardens [6] and, internally, the principal rooms were the council chamber and the assembly hall. [7]

A mosaic, created by three Polish servicemen, was installed on the Queen's Gardens elevation of the building and unveiled in October 1941 to record the appreciation of the many Polish soldiers who had been welcomed to St Andrews following the capitulation of Poland at the start of the Second World War. [8] [9] [10] The building was extended along Queen's Gardens by two more bays in a similar style in the 1964. [11] The complex continued to serve as the headquarters of the burgh council for much of the 20th century, but ceased to be the local seat of government when the enlarged North East Fife District Council was formed in 1975. [12] It subsequently became the meeting place of the Royal Burgh of St Andrews Community Council. [13]

Works of art in the town hall include a portrait by an unknown artist of the member of parliament, George Dempster of Dunnichen, [14] and a portrait by John Watson Gordon of the former provost of St Andrews, Sir Hugh Lyon Playfair. [15] There is also a wood carving by the Polish artist, Józef Sękalski, depicting the crucifixion of St Andrew and a boar. [16]

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 Historic Environment Scotland. "Town Hall, South Street and Queen's Gardens (LB40695)" . Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  2. 1 2 Historic Environment Scotland. "St Andrews, Market Street, Tolbooth (93295)". Canmore . Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  3. ↑ "Ordnance Survey Map". 1855. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  4. 1 2 "St Andrews Town Hall". Dictionary of Scottish Architects. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  5. ↑ Gunther, Albert Everard (1977). The Life of William Carmichael M'Intosh MD FRS of St Andrews (1838-1931), a Pioneer in Marine Biology. University of St. Andrews. ISBN   978-0707301389.
  6. ↑ "St Andrews News Town Hall". St Andrews University. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  7. ↑ "St Andrews Town Hall". History Hit. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  8. ↑ "Mosaic Polish Forces St Andrews". Traces of War. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  9. ↑ "The story of how the Poles came to play an important role in town life". Fife Today. 29 May 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  10. ↑ "Polish Soldier mosaic, St Andrews Town Hall, Scotland". Picfair. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  11. ↑ "Funding to repair Fife town hall welcomed". Fife Today. 16 March 2021. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  12. ↑ "Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  13. ↑ "Calendar". Royal Burgh of St Andrews Community Council. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  14. ↑ "George Dempster of Dunnichen". Art UK. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  15. ↑ Gordon, John Watson. "Sir Hugh Lyon Playfair". Art UK. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  16. ↑ "Wood Carving in St Andrews Town Hall: the Crucified St Andrew and a Boar". National Galleries of Scotland. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
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