The Isles of Scilly Town Hall is a municipal building in Hugh Town, on the Isles of Scilly, in England. The building, which serves as the offices of Council of the Isles of Scilly, is a Grade II listed building.[1]
| Isles of Scilly Town Hall | |
|---|---|
 The building in 2008 | |
| Location | The Parade, Hugh Town |
| Coordinates | 49°54′52″N 6°18′55″W / 49.9144°N 6.3153°W |
| Built | 1889 |
| Architect | J. Goodfellow |
| Architectural style(s) | Neoclassical style |
Listed Building – Grade II | |
| Official name | Town Hall |
| Designated | 14 December 1992 |
| Reference no. | 1219066 |
  Shown on Isles of Scilly | |
History
editThe building was commissioned by Algernon Dorrien-Smith, whose uncle, Augustus Smith had acquired a lease over the Isles of Scilly from the Duchy of Cornwall for £20,000 in 1834, and created himself Lord Proprietor of the Isles of Scilly.[2] He had intended that it would accommodate a market hall and some public rooms.[3] The site he selected was an area known as The Parade, a small park situated at the centre of the isthmus, which had served as a parade ground for the Sea Fencibles during the Napoleonic Wars.[4] The new building was designed by J. Goodfellow in the neoclassical style, built in coursed granite and was completed in 1889.[1] It served as a public hall, theatre, magistrates' court, council chamber, and local authority offices.[5]
In 1891, the Isles of Scilly Rural District Council was formed, as a sui generis local government authority, outside the administrative county of Cornwall.[6] The council established its offices in the town hall,[7] and went on to commission an extension to create extra office space in 1970.[8] Following the implementation of the Local Government Act 1972, the council was renamed as the Council of the Isles of Scilly.[9][10]
The council relocated its council chamber to the Old Wesleyan Chapel on Garrison Lane, in 2002.[11][12] By the 2010s, the town hall was in poor repair and the stage area was condemned in 2017. In 2024, the council received a £4.6 million National Lottery Heritage Fund grant to restore the building.[13] The building will house a cultural centre and the Isles of Scilly Museum, whose previous building, purpose-built in 1967, was condemned as unsafe in 2019.[14] Some of the existing museum's objects were moved into temporary storage in the town hall in 2020.[15]
Architecture
editThe two-storey building is constructed of squared and coursed granite, and it has a slate roof. It has a rectangular plan. The design involves a symmetrical main frontage of three bays facing onto The Parade. The central bay features a doorway flanked by two sash windows. The first floor is fenestrated by three more sash windows and all openings have segmental surrounds and keystones. At roof level there is a pediment. with a date stone flanked by two small windows in the tympanum. The building was grade II listed in 1992.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c Historic England. "Town Hall (1219066)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
- ^ Bowley, R. L. (1990). The Fortunate Islands. St Mary's, Isles of Scilly: Bowley Publications. p. 88. ISBN 978-0900184284.
- ^ Kirkham, Graeme (1 April 2003). "Cornwall & Scilly Urban Survey: Historic characterisation for regeneration: Hugh Town" (PDF). Council of the Isles of Scilly. p. 28. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
- ^ "The Garrison, St Mary's, Isles of Scilly, Conservation Plan" (PDF). Cornwall Council. 1 October 2010. p. 161. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
- ^ Clegg, David (2005). Cornwall & the Isles of Scilly: The Complete Guide. Matador. p. 159. ISBN 978-1904744993.
- ^ Annual Report of the Local Government Board. 1891. pp. xliv–xlvi. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
- ^ "No. 44985". The London Gazette. 11 December 1969. p. 12382.
- ^ "Isles of Scilly Museum and Cultural Centre, Design and access statement" (PDF). Council of the Isles of Scilly. 1 July 2022. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
- ^ "Isles of Scilly Cornwall through time". visionofbritain.org.uk. Retrieved 19 January 2007.
- ^ Local Government Act 1972. 1972 c.70. The Stationery Office Ltd. 1997. ISBN 0-10-547072-4.
- ^ Historic England. "Former Wesleyan Methodist Chapel, Garrison Lane (Grade II) (1141217)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
- ^ "Council Chamber, Old Wesleyan Chapel". Council of the Isles of Scilly. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
- ^ "Isles of Scilly Town Hall revamp thanks to £4.6m lottery grant". BBC News. 9 April 2024. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
- ^ "Temporary closure of museum building on Church Street". scilly.gov.uk. Council of the Isles of Scilly. 12 June 2019. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
- ^ "Museum News". Isles of Scilly Museum. 29 September 2020. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
soon, we should have everything stored in either the Porthmellon Enterprise Centre or the Town Hall