37298
The Grade II* Listed Birmingham Council House, in the city centre of Birmingham, West Midlands.
The land on which the Council House and adjacent Museum and Art Gallery are located was purchased in 1853. This land consisted of Ann Street which was home to properties such as the "Cabinet of Curiosities", a clothes shop advertised as "An exhibition for the curious observer of natural phenomena". The building had a clock tower topped with a flagpole. The top was castellated and the walls were whitewashed and adorned in advertisements and messages. The last tenants of the building were the Suffield family, ancestors of J. R. R. Tolkien.
The land was earmarked for development, however constant financial difficulties put all development on hold until 1871 when the council finally agreed to build offices on the site. A design competition was established and the council received 29 entries, which was disappointing in comparison to the 179 entries Sheffield and Birmingham received. However a decision was delayed by further financial difficulties. The council was then split over the Gothic entry by Martin & Chamberlain and the classical entry by Yeoville Thomason.
Thomason's design was chosen; however amendments to the art gallery entrance and clock tower were made. The clock and tower are known locally as "Big Brum". Construction commenced on the building in 1874 when the first stone was laid by the then mayor Joseph Chamberlain. The building was completed in 1879 and cost £163,000 (£19.2 million in 2019). A debate was held to decide the name of the building: the options were The Municipal Hall, Council House and Guildhall.
Sir Joseph Chamberlain is still said to have a presence in the building, It’s claimed his ghost haunts his old office in the corner of the building on the first floor and is often spotted walking the corridors or standing behind his old desk.
It’s claimed his ghost haunts his old office in the corner of the building on the first floor and is often spotted walking the corridors or standing behind his old desk.
The Council House was extended almost immediately, in 1881–85. The architect was again Yeoville Thomason. This was a combined art gallery, museum, and the home of the corporation's Gas Department, whose budget subsidised the building, as legislation limited the expenditure of ratepayers' taxes on the arts.
Above the main entrance, which faces Victoria Square, is a mosaic by Salviati Burke and Co. of Venice. Above that, the pediment shows Britannia receiving the manufacturers of Birmingham. The carved decoration on the entablature includes green men.
The Council House was extended a second time in 1911–19 (by architects Ashley & Newman) with a new block to the north and connected to the original building by an intricately designed archway (internally a corridor). The archway or bridge slightly resembles The Bridge of Sighs in Venice. The extension contains much of the Museum and Art Gallery and, on its ground floor, the Gas Hall, now an exhibition space.
Information sources:
www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/nostalgia/look-back-history...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_House,_Birmingham
37298
The Grade II* Listed Birmingham Council House, in the city centre of Birmingham, West Midlands.
The land on which the Council House and adjacent Museum and Art Gallery are located was purchased in 1853. This land consisted of Ann Street which was home to properties such as the "Cabinet of Curiosities", a clothes shop advertised as "An exhibition for the curious observer of natural phenomena". The building had a clock tower topped with a flagpole. The top was castellated and the walls were whitewashed and adorned in advertisements and messages. The last tenants of the building were the Suffield family, ancestors of J. R. R. Tolkien.
The land was earmarked for development, however constant financial difficulties put all development on hold until 1871 when the council finally agreed to build offices on the site. A design competition was established and the council received 29 entries, which was disappointing in comparison to the 179 entries Sheffield and Birmingham received. However a decision was delayed by further financial difficulties. The council was then split over the Gothic entry by Martin & Chamberlain and the classical entry by Yeoville Thomason.
Thomason's design was chosen; however amendments to the art gallery entrance and clock tower were made. The clock and tower are known locally as "Big Brum". Construction commenced on the building in 1874 when the first stone was laid by the then mayor Joseph Chamberlain. The building was completed in 1879 and cost £163,000 (£19.2 million in 2019). A debate was held to decide the name of the building: the options were The Municipal Hall, Council House and Guildhall.
Sir Joseph Chamberlain is still said to have a presence in the building, It’s claimed his ghost haunts his old office in the corner of the building on the first floor and is often spotted walking the corridors or standing behind his old desk.
It’s claimed his ghost haunts his old office in the corner of the building on the first floor and is often spotted walking the corridors or standing behind his old desk.
The Council House was extended almost immediately, in 1881–85. The architect was again Yeoville Thomason. This was a combined art gallery, museum, and the home of the corporation's Gas Department, whose budget subsidised the building, as legislation limited the expenditure of ratepayers' taxes on the arts.
Above the main entrance, which faces Victoria Square, is a mosaic by Salviati Burke and Co. of Venice. Above that, the pediment shows Britannia receiving the manufacturers of Birmingham. The carved decoration on the entablature includes green men.
The Council House was extended a second time in 1911–19 (by architects Ashley & Newman) with a new block to the north and connected to the original building by an intricately designed archway (internally a corridor). The archway or bridge slightly resembles The Bridge of Sighs in Venice. The extension contains much of the Museum and Art Gallery and, on its ground floor, the Gas Hall, now an exhibition space.
Information sources:
www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/nostalgia/look-back-history...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_House,_Birmingham