Wallasey Town Hall

Last updated

Wallasey Town Hall
Wallasey Town Hall 2017-1.jpg
Wallasey Town Hall
Location Wallasey
Coordinates 53°24′57″N3°01′22″W / 53.4159°N 3.0229°W / 53.4159; -3.0229
Built1916
Architect Briggs, Wolstenholme & Thornely
Architectural style(s) Neoclassical style
Listed Building – Grade II*
Official nameWallasey Town Hall
Designated16 May 1990, upgraded from Grade II to II* on 5 July 2023
Reference no.1258467
Merseyside UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Shown in Merseyside

Wallasey Town Hall is a municipal building on Brighton Street in Wallasey, Merseyside, England. The town hall, which was the headquarters of Wirral Council until 2023, is a Grade II* listed building. [1]

Contents

History

The foundation stone Wallasey Town Hall foundation stone.jpg
The foundation stone
The ground floor atrium Wallasey Town Hall interior.jpg
The ground floor atrium

In the early 20th century, Wallasey urban district council, which had been created in 1894, [2] was based in council offices in Church Street. [3] After population growth, largely associated with the tourism, Wallasey became a municipal borough in 1910 and then a county borough in 1913. [2] Civic leaders decided to procure a town hall: after a long debate, during which sites at Liscard and in Rake Lane were also considered, the site they selected was one which had been occupied by a mansion known as Northmead House. [4]

The foundation stone for the new building was laid by King George V, who was accompanied by Queen Mary, on 25 March 1914. [3] It was designed by Briggs, Wolstenholme & Thornely in the Neoclassical style and built by Moss and Sons of Loughborough. [3] In 1916, the completed building was placed under the command of the 1st Western General Hospital in Fazakerley and used as a military hospital for soldiers who had been wounded in action during the First World War. [3] After the war it was converted for its intended use as a municipal building and was officially opened as Wallasey Town Hall on 3 November 1920. [3]

The design involved a symmetrical main frontage with seventeen bays facing onto the River Mersey with the blank end bays slighted projected forward; the central section of five bays, which projected forward more prominently, featured a doorway on the ground floor and three tall round-headed sash windows on the first floor. [1] At roof level, there was a three-stage lantern, with large round headed arches spanning the first and second stages; seated figures, designed by William Birnie Rhind and representing peace, courage, prudence and industry, were placed at the corners of the third stage, and a copper urn was installed at its apex. [1] The building, including the lantern, was 180 feet (55 m) high. [3] Internally, the principal rooms were the civic hall, which had a proscenium arch, and the council chamber, which was panelled. [1] An organ designed and manufactured by Henry Willis & Sons, which had originally been installed in City Hall in Dublin, was acquired for the civic hall in 1926. [3]

The civic hall was badly damaged, and its organ destroyed, by bombing on the night of 3 August 1940 during the Second World War and King George VI and Queen Elizabeth visited the town hall to inspect the damage on 6 November 1940. [3] Salvaged parts from the organ were subsequently used to build an organ which was initially installed at the Te Awamutu Methodist Church in Christchurch, New Zealand and later at the Church of St Michael and All Angels in Christchurch, New Zealand. [5] After the war, a plaque, which was flanked by the flags of the United States and the United Kingdom, was installed inside the town hall on the first floor to commemorate the role of the American forces who had been stationed in the town during the war. [3]

Queen Elizabeth II, accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, visited the town hall and waved to the crowd from the balcony on 13 July 1957. [6] As the work of the borough council continued to grow, a modern annex was built to the north west of the main building and completed in 1964. [3]

The town hall continued to serve as the headquarters of the county borough of Wallasey and became the local seat of government of the enlarged Wirral Council in 1974. [7] The singer, Sir Paul McCartney, attended the marriage of his niece, Sally Harris, at the town hall on 23 June 2000. [8] The freedom of the Wirral was awarded to the 96 victims of the Hillsborough disaster at a ceremony in the town hall in September 2017. [9] [10]

Works of art in the town hall include a landscape depicting the Liverpool Docks by Henry Melling. [11]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Merseyside</span> County of England

Merseyside is a ceremonial and metropolitan county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Greater Manchester to the east, Cheshire to the south, the Welsh county of Flintshire across the Dee Estuary to the southwest, and the Irish Sea to the west. The largest settlement is the city of Liverpool.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leasowe</span> Human settlement in England

Leasowe is a village in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. Located on the north coast of the Wirral Peninsula, it is approximately 2 mi (3.2 km) to the west of Wallasey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metropolitan Borough of Wirral</span> Metropolitan borough in England

The Metropolitan Borough of Wirral is a metropolitan borough of Merseyside, in North West England. It has a population of 322,453 (2022), and encompasses 62 square miles (161 km2) of the northern part of the Wirral Peninsula. Major settlements include Birkenhead, Wallasey, Bebington, Heswall, Hoylake and West Kirby. Wirral is England's westernmost metropolitan borough, faced by the city of Liverpool to the northeast over the River Mersey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liscard</span> Human settlement in England

Liscard is an area of the town of Wallasey, in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. The most centrally located of Wallasey's townships, it is the main shopping area of the town, with many shops located in the Cherry Tree Shopping Centre. At the 2001 census the population of Liscard local government ward was recorded at 14,301, increasing to 15,574 at the 2011 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wallasey</span> Town in Merseyside, England

Wallasey is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Cheshire, it is at the mouth of the River Mersey, on the north-eastern corner of the Wirral Peninsula. At the 2011 Census, the population was 60,284.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hamilton Square</span> Town square in Wirral, England

Hamilton Square is a town square in Birkenhead, Wirral, England. The Georgian square, which was designed by Edinburgh architect James Gillespie Graham, has the most Grade I listed buildings outside London. It is named after the family of the wife of Scottish shipbuilder William Laird.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birkenhead Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England

Birkenhead Town Hall is a civic building and former town hall in Birkenhead on the Wirral Peninsula in Merseyside, England. The building was the former administrative headquarters of the County Borough of Birkenhead, and more recently, council offices for the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral. Birkenhead Town Hall remains the location of the town's register office. However, since the closure of the Wirral Museum in 2010, there is uncertainty over the future purpose of the Grade II* listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Huddersfield Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England

Huddersfield Town Hall is a municipal facility in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England. It is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wirral Council</span> Local authority in England

Wirral Council, or Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council, is the local authority of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral in Merseyside, England. It is a metropolitan borough council and provides the majority of local government services in the borough. The council has been a member of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority since 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old Town Hall, Richmond</span> Municipal building in London, England

The Old Town Hall, Richmond on Whittaker Avenue in Richmond, London is a former municipal building which from 1893 to 1965 served as the town hall for the Municipal Borough of Richmond.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wimbledon Town Hall</span> Municipal building in London, England

Wimbledon Town Hall is a municipal building in The Broadway, Wimbledon, London. It is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lancaster Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Lancaster, Lancashire, England

Lancaster Town Hall is a municipal building in Dalton Square, Lancaster, Lancashire, England. It was built in 1909 and is a Grade II* listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bournemouth Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Bournemouth, Dorset, England

Bournemouth Town Hall, also known as the Civic Centre and formerly the Mont Dore Hotel, is a municipal facility in Bourne Avenue, Bournemouth, England. The town hall, which is the meeting place of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council, is a Grade II listed building. The town hall stands opposite Bournemouth Gardens and the Bournemouth War Memorial and is adjacent to St. Andrew's Church, Richmond Hill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Helens Town Hall</span> Municipal building in St Helens, Merseyside, England

St Helens Town Hall is a municipal building in Bickerstaffe Street in St Helens, Merseyside, England. Although the town hall itself, which is the headquarters of St Helens Council, is not a listed building, there are two telephone kiosks flanking the entrance which are listed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bootle Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Bootle, Merseyside, England

Bootle Town Hall is a municipal building in Oriel Road in Bootle, Merseyside, England. The building, which is the headquarters of Sefton Council, is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newbury Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Newbury, Berkshire, England

Newbury Town Hall is a municipal building in the Market Place in Newbury, Berkshire, England. The building, which is the meeting place of Newbury Town Council, is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brighouse Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Brighouse, West Yorkshire, England

Brighouse Town Hall is a former municipal building in Thornton Square, Brighouse, West Yorkshire, England. The town hall, which was the headquarters of Brighouse Borough Council, is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ossett Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Ossett, West Yorkshire, England

Ossett Town Hall is a municipal building in the Market Place, Ossett, West Yorkshire, England. The town hall, which was the headquarters of Ossett Borough Council until 1974, is a grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evesham Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Evesham, Worcestershire, England

Evesham Town Hall is a municipal structure in the Market Place in Evesham, Worcestershire, England. The town hall, which was the headquarters of Evesham Borough Council, is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crawley Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Crawley, England

Crawley Town Hall is a municipal structure in The Boulevard, Crawley, West Sussex, England. It was completed in 2023 and serves as the headquarters of Crawley Borough Council.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Historic England. "Wallasey Town Hall (1258467)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  2. 1 2 "Wallasey County Borough council and predecessors". National Archives. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Wirrall Town Halls and History" (PDF). Wirrall Council. pp. 1–30. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  4. ↑ "Ordnance Survey Map". 1876. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  5. ↑ "Organ of the Blitz takes stand-in role". Stuff. 20 March 2020. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  6. ↑ "The Queen Touched By Ringing Cheers". Wallasey News. 13 July 1957. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  7. ↑ Local Government Act 1972. 1972 c.70. The Stationery Office Ltd. 1997. ISBN   0-10-547072-4.
  8. ↑ "Harris, Sally". The Paul McCartney Encyclopedia. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  9. ↑ "Freedom of Wirral awarded to Hillsborough victims". Click Liverpool. 7 July 2017. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  10. ↑ "Happy 100th birthday Wallasey Town Hall". Wirral View. 3 November 2020. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  11. ↑ Melling, Henry. "Liverpool Docks Scene with Warehouses". Art UK. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.