Abergavenny Town Hall

Abergavenny Town Hall (Welsh: Neuadd y Dref, Y Fenni) is a public building located on Cross Street, Abergavenny in Monmouthshire, Wales. The town hall, which also houses the town's market, is a Grade II listed building.[1]

Abergavenny Town Hall
Clock Tower
LocationAbergavenny
Coordinates51°49′19″N 3°01′05″W
Built1869 - 1871
ArchitectWilson and Willcox
Architectural style(s)Gothic Revival style
Listed Building – Grade II
Designated11 February 1971
Reference no.2416
Shown in Monmouthshire

History

The first building on the site was a market hall which had been financed by a legacy from the local member of parliament, Philip Jones, and which was completed in the early 17th century.[2] Following their appointment in 1794,[3] one of the first acts of the new Abergavenny Improvement Commissioners was to commission a new market hall which was designed by the well-known Regency and Georgian era architect, John Nash, and completed in 1796.[4][5] In the 1860s, in anticipation of a further increases in their responsibilities, including those of an urban sanitary authority, the commissioners decided to procure a town hall which would be built on the same site.[2]

Construction of the new building, which was built with old red sandstone with Bath limestone and slate roofs, started in 1869.[1] It was designed by Wilson and Willcox of Bath in the Gothic Revival style, built by S. J. Moreland and Sons of Gloucester and completed in 1871.[1] The design involved an asymmetrical main frontage with five bays facing onto Cross Street; the central section featured an archway leading to a market hall flanked by two gothic windows on each side.[1] There were five two-light sash windows divided by Corinthian order columns on the first floor and there was a clock tower with a copper roof at the north west corner.[1] The building incorporated a corn exchange, municipal offices, a council chamber, a market hall, an assembly room and the local poor law offices.[2] The assembly room was converted for use as a theatre in 1906.[1]

The building served as the headquarters of the Abergavenny Urban District Council for much of the 20th century but ceased to be local seat of government when the enlarged Monmouth District was formed in 1974.[6] Abergavenny Town Council, which was formed in 1981,[7] made the building its home and installed two members of staff there.[8] Subsequent improvements included the modernisation of the theatre in 1996.[1]

The cattle market, which had been held on the site for over 150 years, moved to Bryngwyn in Monmouthshire in December 2013.[9] Other types of market continued to be held in the building, including a flea market which continued to be held there every Wednesday.[9] A programme of works, designed by GWP Architecture and costing £2.2 million, to convert the building into a community hub was completed in September 2020.[10][11][12]

References
  1. Cadw. "Abergavenny Town Hall (2416)". National Historic Assets of Wales. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
  2. "Town Hall and One Stop Shop". Abergavenny Street Survey. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
  3. "Abergavenny Borough Records". Archives Hub. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
  4. "Architecture of Wales 15th-17th Century". Retrieved 25 November 2020.
  5. "Timeline History of Abergavenny". Visitor UK. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
  6. Local Government Act 1972. 1972 c.70. The Stationery Office Ltd. 1997. ISBN 0-10-547072-4.
  7. "Abergavenny Town Council". National Archives. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
  8. "Annual Report 2018/19" (PDF). Abergavenny Town Council. p. 2. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
  9. "Abergavenny market | Abergavenny". www.abergavenny.org.uk. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
  10. "Abergavenny Town Hall re-development is 'the best option in the current economic climate'". Abergavenny Chronicle. 5 April 2018. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
  11. "Next stage in Abergavenny Town Hall revamp to develop community hub set to be agreed". South Wales Argus. 18 September 2018. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
  12. "Abergavenny's new Community Hub opens". Monmouthshire Council. 14 September 2020. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
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