TOWN HALL \ Heritage
Heritage at the Town Hall
In 2021 Hebden Bridge Community Association received a grant from the Architectural Heritage Fund to develop plans for the future use of the Grade II listed Victorian part of the Town Hall known as the ‘Old Building’.
This section explains how we are using the funding and outlines details of the project and its focus.
Want to shape the future of the Old Building?
Here’s how.
We’re involving local people and visitors in the development of the project asking them what they think about the Town Hall today; about our plans for the future and what changes and activities they would like to see on site. What you tell us will help us to create a proposal for expanding the use of the Old Building. The Town Hall is made up of two buildings; the Old Building opened in 1897 and the new part in 2012. The Old Building is now in need of repairs along with improved access and facilities and a better link with the new building.
Please let us know your thoughts and ideas by completing our short survey. It only takes a few minutes to have your say!
Historical Background
The 'Old Building’ part of the Town Hall is among one of a number of fine architectural buildings located in the town of Hebden Bridge.
Built in two parts, it was opened by E. J. Crossley (Chairman of the Council at the time) and reflects the civic pride of its Victorian commissioners. Built with Elizabethan and Jacobean influences, its ‘Jacobethan’ style is typical of the period. The Old Building is Grade II listed and sits within a wider Conservation area. The material of the building is millstone grit sandstone with a Welsh slate roof, and its design boasts dramatic mullioned oriel windows which project from the front and rear of the Council Chamber room. The architects of the Old Building were Sutcliffe & Sutcliffe of Hebden Bridge and Todmorden who also designed the adjacent St. George’s Bridge (which accounts for some of the aesthetic synergies between the two).
The Council Chamber room is the real ‘gem’ of the Old Building, featuring tall wood panelling, herringbone parquet flooring, and a vaulted ceiling with ornate plasterwork. The furniture is also listed, comprising of a wide horseshoe table, matching furniture and a grand central chair (note the carving of the River Calder on the chair backrest). Also in the room are the portraits of past Chairpersons and Mayors, and notably one of a woman - Sheila May Doyle (1973-74) - a relative rarity for the time.
Adjacent to the Chamber is a smaller meeting room called the Greenwood Room named after the historically significant Joseph Greenwood, Councillor and manager of what was the fustian manufacturing cooperative at Nutclough Mill (now Calrec).
Key Historical Dates
2020 – 2021 Closed due to Covid-19 pandemic, now re-opened.
2015, 2020 Town Hall used as a flood hub in the wake of two devastating floods.
2012 £3.7m capital build project of the extension (including the café) is completed, with the Waterfront Hall now being adjacent to the site of the previous Transmission Station building.
2011 Town Hall first participated in Heritage Open Days.
2010 Asset transfer of Hebden Bridge Town Hall from Calderdale MBC to Hebden Bridge Community Association (HBCA).
2008 HBCA formed as a charity and not-for-profit company limited by guarantee.
2007 – 9 Friends of the Town Hall enter transfer negotiations with Calderdale MBC. 2006 Campaign launched by a working party to preserve the future of the Town Hall as a community-owned and managed site.
2003 Yorkshire Forward identify the Town Hall as a significant asset of the town. c.1975 – 2000 Town Hall becomes increasingly underused and goes into gradual decline.
1984 Town Hall was designated its Grade II Listed status. 1974 Calderdale Metropolitan District Council formed resulting in some services being relocated. c.1961 Library moves out and was later taken over by Hope Sunday School.
1937 Hebden Bridge and Mytholmroyd Councils amalgamated to form Hebden Royd Urban District Council.
1917 Tram Transmission Station closed, later converted into the Town library (1930s).
1901 Transmission Station erected behind the Old Building (along the river Calder) by Halifax Corporation to power the tram service between Halifax and Hebden Bridge.
1897-8 Original Old Building completed (shortly after the new St. George’s Bridge) including Council offices and fire station.
Ways to get invoved
Throughout 2021 - 22 Hebden Bridge Community Association will be undertaking a range of consultation activities with various stakeholders, partners and groups in the community. If you or your group would like to speak to us directly to provide feedback or to propose an idea for the future of the Old Building, we’d be happy to hear from you.
