Stockport Town Hall is a building in

Stockport Stockport is a town in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt, Rivers Goyt and River Tame, Greater Manchester, Tame merge to create the River Mersey he ...

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Cheshire to the south, and Merseyside to the west. Its largest settlement is the city of Manchester. ...

, England, that houses the government and administrative functions of

Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council (SMBC), also known as Stockport Council, is the Local government in England, local authority of the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport in Greater Manchester, England. It is a metropolitan borough council an ...

. Stockport Town Hall is a

Grade II* listed 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, H ...

building.

History

The building, which was designed by the architect Sir Alfred Brumwell Thomas in the English Baroque style, was opened by the then

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

and

Princess of Wales Princess of Wales (; ) is a title used since the 14th century by the wife of the Prince of Wales. The Princess is the apparent future queen consort, as "Prince of Wales" is a title reserved by custom for the heir apparent to the Monarchy of the ...

on 7 July 1908. To commemorate the Royal visit, part of Heaton Lane, a main shopping street in the town, was renamed Prince's Street. The ballroom in the town hall served as a hospital during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and was used as a home for refugees from the

Channel Islands The Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They are divided into two Crown Dependencies: the Jersey, Bailiwick of Jersey, which is the largest of the islands; and the Bailiwick of Guernsey, ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The town hall, which had served as the headquarters of the county borough of Stockport for much of the 20th century, continued to be the local seat of government after the enlarged

was formed in 1974.

Description

The chamber is decorated with elaborate plasterwork, brass chandeliers and decorative carvings on oak benches. The civic collection of silver, some of which dates from the 15th century, lines the wall of the corridor outside the chamber. An imposing Italian marble entrance leads to the Edwardian Ballroom, which former poet laureate Sir

John Betjeman Sir John Betjeman, (; 28 August 190619 May 1984) was an English poet, writer, and broadcaster. He was Poet Laureate from 1972 until his death. He was a founding member of The Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architect ...

described as "magnificent". The ballroom has a

Wurlitzer The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, usually referred to as simply Wurlitzer, is an American company started in Cincinnati in 1853 by German immigrant (Franz) Rudolph Wurlitzer. The company initially imported stringed, woodwind and brass instruments ...

Publix One

theatre organ A theatre organ (also known as a theater organ, or, especially in the United Kingdom, a cinema organ) is a type of pipe organ developed to accompany silent films from the 1900s to the 1920s. Theatre organs have horseshoe-shaped arrangements of ...

with four manuals and 20 ranks of pipes, specified by Jesse Crawford. It was originally installed in the Paramount Cinema on Oxford Road in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

in 1930; it had been planned to install one of these in each of the 50 Paramount theatres, however this was the only one to be installed, and the only one of that model to leave the United States. When the theatre was divided, the organ was acquired by the Lancastrian Theatre Organ Trust, loaned to the city of Manchester and relocated to the

Free Trade Hall The Free Trade Hall on Peter Street, Manchester, England, was constructed in 1853–56 on St Peter's Fields, the site of the Peterloo Massacre. It is now a Radisson Hotels, Radisson hotel. The hall was built to commemorate the repeal of the Corn ...

(a process taking four years); and was first used there in September 1977. When the Free Trade Hall closed, it was moved to Stockport Town Hall in 1999. The town hall, which as the home of Stockport Symphony Orchestra, hosts classical concerts on a regular basis, has been nicknamed "the wedding cake".

Gallery

Image:Stockport Town Hall under construction c.1907.jpg, Stockport Town Hall under construction c.1907 Image:Opening of Stockport Town Hall 1908.jpg, The

and

at the opening of Stockport Town Hall Image:Stockport Town Hall (1).jpg, Stockport Town Hall Image:Stockport_Town_Hall,_main_entrance.jpg, Stockport Town Hall, main entrance Image:Stockport_town_hall_2009_002.jpg, Stockport Town Hall Image:Stockport_town_hall_2009_001.jpg, Stockport Town Hall

References

{{Buildings and structures in Stockport Borough Buildings and structures in Stockport City and town halls in Greater Manchester Grade II* listed buildings in Greater Manchester Government buildings completed in 1908

History

Description

Gallery

See also

References