High Wycombe Town Hall
High Wycombe Town Hall in 2022
LocationQueen Victoria Road, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
Coordinates51°37′40″N 0°44′58″W / 51.6278°N 0.7494°W / 51.6278; -0.7494
Built1904
ArchitectCharles Bateman and Alfred Hale
Architectural style(s)Queen Anne style
Listed Building – Grade II
Designated29 January 1996
Reference no.1246257
High Wycombe Town Hall is located in Buckinghamshire
High Wycombe Town Hall
Location of High Wycombe Town Hall in Buckinghamshire

High Wycombe Town Hall is a public building located on Queen Victoria Road in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. The building, which is used as an events venue, is a Grade II listed building.[1]

History

The building was commissioned to replace the 18th century guildhall in the High Street.[2] The foundation stone for the new building was laid by the mayor, Daniel Clarke, on 5 November 1903.[3] The building was designed by Charles Bateman and Alfred Hale in the Queen Anne style and was officially opened on 12 October 1904.[1]

The design involved seven bays with a central doorway flanked by Ionic order columns and segmented windows in the bays.[1] The design for the first floor involved tall windows, while the attic storey had round windows at either end.[1] On the roof was a clock turret with cupola above.[1] Internally, the principal room on the first floor was the Oak Room, which was heavily panelled and featured stained glass windows depicting local people: the philosopher, Edmund Burke, the former Prime Minister, Benjamin Disraeli, the English Civil War Parliamentarian, John Hampden, and the founder of Pennsylvania, William Penn.[1]

Bateman and Hale's original plans for the building had proposed a northern wing, continuing up the Queen Victoria Road frontage, which was to have included a magistrates court, council chamber, and municipal offices for the borough council. Due to budget constraints, the council decided not to build this wing in the first phase of construction, but retained the land with the intention of adding it at a later date. The town hall as built in 1904 was therefore primarily used as a public assembly hall and entertainment venue. The council continued to hold its meetings at the guildhall, whilst the council's staff continued to be accommodated in various rented offices around the town.[4][5][6]

When the council decided to proceed with building its own municipal offices and council chamber in the early 1930s, it chose not to use the site north of the town hall which had been reserved for that purpose in the 1903 design. Instead, it built a separate building, called Municipal Offices, on the opposite side of Queen Victoria Road, facing the town hall. The surplus land north of the town hall was used instead to build a public library and museum, which opened on 25 June 1932, four days after the opening of the municipal offices.[7]

The town hall continued to be used as an events venue. Rock performers included The Rolling Stones in August 1963,[8] The Who in November 1965[9] and Joy Division in February 1980.[10] It was incorporated into the Wycombe Swan entertainment complex, which opened in 1992, continuing its function as an entertainment venue.[11]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Historic England. "Former town hall (1246257)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
  2. ↑ "The buildings of Wycombe: The former Town Hall". Bucks Free Press. 23 April 2011. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
  3. ↑ "High Wycombe Town Hall: Foundation Stone". Retrieved 20 August 2020.
  4. ↑ "The New Town Hall for High Wycombe: The accepted design and others". South Bucks Standard. High Wycombe. 22 May 1903. p. 3. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  5. ↑ Kelly's Directory of Buckinghamshire. London. 1915. p. 231.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  6. ↑ "The Old, The New, and the In-Between" (PDF). The Wycombe Society. 2014. p. 3. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
  7. ↑ "Opening of Wycombe's new library and museum". Bucks Herald. Aylesbury. 1 July 1932. p. 2. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
  8. ↑ "The Rolling Stones". Tamworth Bands. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
  9. ↑ "High Wycombe Town Hall". The Who Live. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
  10. ↑ "Joy Division concert: 20 February 1980: Town Hall, High Wycombe". www.joydiv.org. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  11. ↑ "The Swan Theatre, St Mary Street, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire". www.arthurlloyd.co.uk. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
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