Coatbridge Municipal Buildings
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Coatbridge Municipal Buildings, formerly Coatbridge Town Hall, is a municipal building in Dunbeth Road,
Coatbridge Coatbridge (, ) is a town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, about east of Glasgow city centre, set in the central Lowlands. Along with neighbouring town Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, Airdrie, Coatbridge forms the area known as the Monklands (popula ...
,
North Lanarkshire North Lanarkshire (; ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the north-east of the Glasgow City council area and contains many of Glasgow's suburbs, commuter towns, and villages. It also borders East Dunbartonshire, Falkirk (co ...
, Scotland. The building, which was the headquarters of Coatbridge Burgh Council, is a Category B
listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...
.


History

Following significant population growth in the late 19th century, particularly in the iron trade, the burgh council decided to procure a town hall: the site they selected had formed part of the grounds of Dunbeth House, the residence of William Weir, a close relative of the descendants of Alexander Baird who had founded William Baird & Co Ltd, iron founders, in Gartsherrie. Weir donated the land for the town hall to the burgh council. The new building was designed by Alexander McGregor Mitchell in the
Renaissance style Renaissance architecture is the European architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 16th centuries in different regions, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of Ancient Greece, ancient Greek and ...
, built in red sandstone
ashlar Ashlar () is a cut and dressed rock (geology), stone, worked using a chisel to achieve a specific form, typically rectangular in shape. The term can also refer to a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, a ...
and completed in 1894. The design involved an asymmetrical main frontage with nine bays facing onto Dunbeth Road with the last three bays at each end slightly project forward; the left section, which was more elaborate than the other sections, originally featured a large
portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cu ...
with two pairs of
Corinthian order The Corinthian order (, ''Korinthiakós rythmós''; ) is the last developed and most ornate of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Ancient Roman architecture, Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric or ...
columns supporting an
entablature An entablature (; nativization of Italian , from "in" and "table") is the superstructure of moldings and bands which lies horizontally above columns, resting on their capitals. Entablatures are major elements of classical architecture, and ...
, a
balustrade A baluster () is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its ...
and two statues of
lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body (biology), body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the ...
s; there was a
bay window A bay window is a window space projecting outward from the main walls of a building and forming a bay in a room. A bow window is a form of bay with a curve rather than angular facets; an oriel window is a bay window that does not touch the g ...
on the first floor and a
pediment Pediments are a form of gable in classical architecture, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the cornice (an elaborated lintel), or entablature if supported by columns.Summerson, 130 In an ...
containing fine carvings in the tympanum. The centre section featured a tall three-light window on the first floor and a shaped
gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...
above. The right hand section featured a doorway flanked by
pilaster In architecture, a pilaster is both a load-bearing section of thickened wall or column integrated into a wall, and a purely decorative element in classical architecture which gives the appearance of a supporting column and articulates an ext ...
s in the first bay and a bay window flanked by statues in niches on the second floor with a shaped gable above. The statues, which depicted
Justice In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...
and Vulcan, were sculpted by James Alexander Ewing and James Charles Young respectively. Internally, the principal rooms were the council chamber and the main assembly hall, which contained an organ with four manuals and 55 stops, the latter of which had been designed and manufactured by
Henry Willis & Sons Henry Willis & Sons is a British firm of pipe organ builders founded in 1845. Although most of their installations have been in the UK, examples can be found in other countries. Five generations of the Willis family served as principals of th ...
. The main assembly hall hosted many concerts by leading performers including the
Bee Gees The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry Gibb, Barry, Robin Gibb, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio was especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in ...
on 28 October 1967. However, the building was badly damaged in a fire later that year. The centre and right sections of the front elevation survived the fire unscathed but the more elaborate left hand section was completely destroyed: it was replaced in a sympathetic style to a design by Launcelot H. Ross & Lindsay with stonework which broadly mirrored the right hand section but without the doorway. On the Kildonan Street elevation, rather than replicating the original stonework, a modern structure was constructed with a new main entrance. The building continued to serve as the headquarters of Coatbridge Burgh Council for much of the 20th century and, as Coatbridge Municipal Buildings, remained the local seat of government after the enlarged Monklands District Council was formed in 1975. However, it ceased that role when
North Lanarkshire Council North Lanarkshire Council is one of the 32 local authorities of Scotland, covering the North Lanarkshire council area. The council is the second largest Scottish council by number of councillors, having 77 members. Political control The counci ...
was formed, with its headquarters at
Motherwell Motherwell (, ) is a List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, south east of Glasgow. It has a population of around 32,120. Shires of Scotland, Historically in the p ...
, in 1996. North Lanarkshire Council continued to use the building for workspace for various departments including education and social services. In March 2019 the council announced its intention, as part of a savings plan, to close the building and, in June 2020, it announced proposals to convert the building into 49 apartments at a cost of £11 million. Detailed design work was authorised in February 2021.


See also

* List of listed buildings in Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire


References

{{North Lanarkshire places of interest Government buildings completed in 1894
Coatbridge Coatbridge (, ) is a town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, about east of Glasgow city centre, set in the central Lowlands. Along with neighbouring town Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, Airdrie, Coatbridge forms the area known as the Monklands (popula ...
Coatbridge Category B listed buildings in North Lanarkshire Renaissance Revival architecture in the United Kingdom 1894 establishments in Scotland Listed government buildings in Scotland County halls in Scotland