County Hall, Northallerton

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Coordinates: 54°19′58″N 1°26′21″W / 54.3329°N 1.4391°W / 54.3329; -1.4391
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County Hall, Northallerton
Edwardian Baroque
AddressRacecourse Lane
Town or cityNorthallerton
CountryEngland
Coordinates54°19′58″N 1°26′21″W / 54.3329°N 1.4391°W / 54.3329; -1.4391
Current tenantsNorth Yorkshire Council
Groundbreaking1903
Opened1906
Cost£33,000 (1906)
Design and construction
Architect(s)Walter Brierley
Listed Building – Grade II*
Designated16 June 1987
Reference no.1150967

County Hall in

Grade II* listed
building.

History

Northallerton has been the administrative centre of the North Riding of Yorkshire since the end of the 17th century. Many buildings across the town were used for the various councils and local offices of the North Riding.[1]

The land that the hall is built upon was formerly part of Northallerton Racecourse in the Broomfields area of the town. The road to the north of the building connecting the A167 and A168 roads is known as Racecourse Lane.[2] Racecourse Lane was the finishing straight of the track and the big grandstand was located where County Hall is now. The racing died off gradually after the railway was built on its south western corner which had restricted its space. The last race meet was held in 1880; after this, the racecourse was abandoned.[3]

As far back as 1891, North Riding County Council had recognised the need to replace their offices in East Road in the town and the twelve other sites that they occupied that were scattered throughout Northallerton.

Bishop of Richmond.[8] The hall was opened to the council in January 1906.[9]

The external walls were made from local stone (from Whitby and Farndale), with the west facing main entrance side of the building being faced with red bricks from Leicestershire, although local bricks were used internally.[10][8] The roof was finished with slate from Westmorland and the main entrance into the grounds that the hall is set in, has been described as "impressive" as it is lined with hedging, trees and decorative ponds.[11] The interior of the building included Derbyshire Limestone, and white Sicilian and black Belgian marble in the entrance floor.[12] When built, the council chamber was markedly different as it had Diocletian windows and a cupola that hid an early air conditioning system.[13] The building had extra sections added in 1916, 1930 and 1940[14] and many other ancillary buildings were added to the site.[15]

Between October 1914 and January 1919, part of the hall served as a

First World War. The temporary hospital had over 60 beds and over 1,600 patients were nursed during that time.[16] In May 1941, the town of Northallerton was subject to a bombing run by the Luftwaffe. Several incendiary devices were dropped on the town, one of which caused a fire in County Hall though it was soon extinguished with no lasting damage.[17]

In 1974, the government shake up of the counties led to a vast increase in land and population under North Yorkshire County Council, particularly from the newly transferred non-industrial areas of the West Riding of Yorkshire.[18] It was felt that a new headquarters should be situated at York which was to be part of the new county of North Yorkshire. However, it was decided to retain County Hall as the headquarters purely on grounds of cost; it was £7 million cheaper to enhance County Hall than to move to new premises.[19] The main building was Grade II* listed in June 1987[20] and was subject to a £500,000 renovation in 1999.[21]

References

  1. ^ "Parishes: Northallerton | British History Online". www.british-history.ac.uk. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  2. ^ Rhea, Nicholas (26 April 2013). "Headquarters could have ended intiers[sic]". Darlington and Stockton Times. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
  3. ^ Riordan 2002, p. 204.
  4. ^ "County hall to mark centenary". The Northern Echo. 28 January 2006. Retrieved 16 August 2018.
  5. ^ Riordan 2002, p. 154.
  6. ISBN 978-1-84383-541-7
    .
  7. ^ "Past Lives: Legacy of a North Riding colossus". The Northern Echo. 29 September 2000. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
  8. ^ a b Riordan 2002, p. 224.
  9. ^ "1906: County Hall, Northallaton". Archiseek. 15 July 2009. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
  10. ISSN 0960-7870
    .
  11. ^ "Northallerton Conservation Area Appraisal" (PDF). www.hambleton.gov.uk. December 2010. p. 25. Retrieved 16 August 2018.
  12. ^ Dooks, Brian. "'Dignified' County Hall to mark 100 years of service". The Yorkshire Post. Archived from the original on 20 August 2018. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
  13. ISSN 0960-7870
    .
  14. ISBN 9781848681811
    .
  15. ISBN 0-300-09665-8
    .
  16. ^ "When patients from the trenches and nurses took over committee rooms". Darlington and Stockton Times. 26 September 2006. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
  17. ^ Riordan 2002, p. 298.
  18. ISBN 9781840337532
    .
  19. ^ Riordan 2002, p. 369.
  20. ^ Historic England. "County Hall (Grade II*) (1150967)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  21. ISSN 2043-0442
    .

Sources

External links

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