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Hyde Town Hall

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Coordinates: 53°27′03″N 2°04′48″W / 53.4508°N 2.0800°W / 53.4508; -2.0800
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Hyde Town Hall
Hyde Town Hall
LocationMarket Street, Hyde
Coordinates53°27′03″N 2°04′48″W / 53.4508°N 2.0800°W / 53.4508; -2.0800
Built1885
ArchitectJames William Beaumont
Architectural style(s)Neoclassical style
Listed Building – Grade II
Official nameHyde Town Hall
Designated9 December 2009
Reference no.1393594
Hyde Town Hall is located in Greater Manchester
Hyde Town Hall
Shown in Greater Manchester

Hyde Town Hall is a municipal building in the Market Street, Hyde, Greater Manchester, England. The town hall, which was the headquarters of Hyde Borough Council, is a grade II listed building.[1]

History

The mural by Harry Rutherford inside the building

After significant industrial growth in the 19th century, particularly in relation to the cotton industry, Hyde became a municipal borough in 1881.[2] Civic leaders decided to procure a town hall: the site they selected had previously been occupied by Greenfield House,[3] the former home of John Howard, a cotton mill owner who also owned Brereton Hall.[4]

The foundation stone for the new building was laid by the mayor, Thomas Ashton, on 30 June 1883.[5] It was designed by James William Beaumont in the neoclassical style, built in red brick with stone facings and was officially opened by the mayor, Edward Hibbert, on 27 June 1885.[5] The design involved a symmetrical main frontage with eleven bays facing onto Market Street with the last two bays at each end projected forward as pavilions; the central section of seven bays featured a doorway with a fanlight flanked by pilasters and brackets supporting an entablature and a balcony; there was a window with an open pediment containing the borough coat of arms on the first floor and a clock tower with an octagonal dome above.[1] On the first floor there was an oriel window between the two left hand end bays to illuminate the mayor's parlour and two more oriel windows in the central section on either side of the tower.[1] The clock and the bells were a gift from the manager of a local cotton mill, Joshua Bradley.[6] Internally, the principal rooms were the council chamber, the mayor's parlour and a large public hall.[1]

After 23 miners were killed in an explosion at Hyde Colliery in January 1889,[7] the town hall was the venue for the subsequent inquiry held into the disaster in February 1889.[8] A large extension to the rear, which incorporated a police station, a courtroom and additional offices, was completed in 1913.[1]

A mural depicting local scenes painted by the local artist, Harry Rutherford, was installed across the top of a beam above the main staircase at the time of the Festival of Britain in the 1951.[9] The town hall continued to serve as the headquarters of Hyde Borough Council for much of the 20th century but ceased to be the local seat of government when the enlarged Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council was formed in 1974.[10]

In November 2002, a statue of two human figures designed by Stephen Broadbent was unveiled outside the building, commemorating the role of the Chartists in bringing about parliamentary reform,[11] and, in May 2007, a statue of a seal designed by Castle Fine Arts was unveiled outside the building, commemorating the achievements of the Hyde Seal Swimming and Water Polo Club which dominated water polo and swimming in England in the early years of the 20th century.[12] After a programme of refurbishment works, the local public library moved from Union Street into new accommodation in the town hall in March 2015.[13]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Historic England. "Hyde Town Hall (1393594)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  2. ^ Great Britain Historical GIS Project (2004). "Hyde MB through time. Census tables with data for the Local Government District". A vision of Britain through time. University of Portsmouth. Archived from the original on 1 October 2007.
  3. ^ "Ordnance Survey Map". 1881. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  4. ^ Binney, Marcus (12 August 2005). "The Tudor show home". The Times. London. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 17 March 2008.
  5. ^ a b Middleton, Thomas (1899). Annals of Hyde and district: containing historical reminiscences of Denton, Haughton, Dukinfield, Mottram, Longdendale, Bredbury, Marple, and the neighbouring townships. Cartwright & Rattray. pp. 110–111.
  6. ^ "Blue Plaque: Joshua Bradley". Tameside Council. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  7. ^ James, Gary; Mellor, Keith (1989). From Maine Men To Banana Citizens. Nottingham: Temple Press. p. 8. ISBN 1-870010-08-6.
  8. ^ The Times 8, 9 and 16 February 1889.
  9. ^ "Blue Plaque: Harry Rutherford". Tameside Council. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  10. ^ Local Government Act 1972. 1972 c.70. The Stationery Office Ltd. 1997. ISBN 0-10-547072-4.
  11. ^ "Hyde Statues". Tameside Council. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  12. ^ "Hyde Seal Swimming and Water Polo Club". National Archives. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  13. ^ "Hyde library reopens at new town hall site". Manchester Evening News. 2 March 2015. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
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