Wigan Town Hall

Municipal building in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England

Wigan Town Hall

Wigan Town Hall

Location| Wigan
Coordinates| 53°32′42″N 2°37′48″W﻿ / ﻿53.5451°N 2.6299°W﻿ / 53.5451; -2.6299
Built| 1903
Architect| Briggs and Wolstenholme
Architectural style(s)| Baroque style

Listed Building – Grade II

Designated| 11 July 1983
Reference no.| 1384483

Shown in Greater Manchester

The new Town Hall is a former technical college in Library Street, Wigan, England which was converted into a municipal facility in 1990. It is a Grade II listed building.[1]

## History

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The building, which was designed by Briggs and Wolstenholme in the Baroque style, was opened by the Countess of Crawford as the Wigan Mining and Technical College in 1903.[1] The design included a porch with large Ionic order columns and frieze above with the words "Mining Technical College".[1][a] The design also included four turrets with cupolas at roof level.[2] An extension was added in 1929.[3] After expanding into new areas such as building and the arts, the college became known as Wigan College of Technology.[3] The college needed larger premises to accommodate this expansion and secured new facilities in Walkden Avenue in 1990.[4] This enabled the vacated building in Library Street to be converted into a municipal facility to replace the aging old Town Hall at the corner of King Street and Rodney Street.[3] The newly-converted facility was officially opened as the new headquarters of the Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council by the Princess of Wales on 25 November 1991.[5] She unveiled a commemorative plaque and then had lunch with civic leaders.[5]

In late 2008, the red terracotta facade was carefully repaired to stop pieces from breaking away.[6] Then, a more extensive restoration of the town hall, to a design by GT3 Architects[7] and undertaken by ISG Construction at a cost of £7.2 million, was completed in 2016.[8] The restoration work involved changes to the interior layout to create an open-plan environment: it also included removal of ceilings to reveal original cornices, conservation of the original flooring and repairs to decorative tiling.[9] During the work the contractors discovered a hidden network of tunnels, thought to be part of a heating system, as well an ornate mosaic floor and an antique stained glass window.[10]

Important works of art in the town hall include a painting by George Earl depicting Victorians departing by train from King's Cross Station on a journey to Scotland.[11] One of the function rooms displays copies of ten Royal charters that the town has received since it was granted borough status in 1246.[6]

## See also

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* Greater Manchester portal

* Listed buildings in Wigan

## References

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### Notes

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1. ^ In 1990 the words "Mining Technical College" were concealed by a sign with the words "Town Hall".[1]

### Citations

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d Historic England. "Town Hall (formerly Wigan and District Mining and Technical College) and railings (1384483)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
2. ^ "Wigan Town Trail" (PDF). Winged Wheels. p. 39. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
3. ^ a b c "History of Wigan Town". Metropolitan Borough of Wigan. Archived from the original on 6 June 2007. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
4. ^ "Wigan Centres". Wigan and Leigh College. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
5. ^ a b "Royal Visits to Wigan" (PDF). Wigan Council. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
6. ^ a b "Wigan all set for a facelift". Glasgow Evening Times. 23 September 2008. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
7. ^ "Wigan Town Hall". GT3 Architects. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
8. ^ "ISG takes Wigan Town Hall back to the future". Construction Index. 11 July 2013. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
9. ^ "Construction awards shortlist revealed". Place North West. 5 April 2017. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
10. ^ "Victorian tunnels found during £6m revamp of Wigan Town Hall". BBC. 17 May 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
11. ^ Earl, George (1875). "Going North". Art UK. Retrieved 6 August 2020.

* v
* t
* e

Buildings and structures in Wigan Borough, England

Buildings|

* Abram Council Offices
* Astley Green Colliery Museum
* Bedford Hall, Leigh
* Billinge Hospital
* Bispham Hall
* Damhouse, Astley
* Garrett Hall
* Haigh Hall
* Hindley Town Hall
* Ince-in-Makerfield Town Hall
* Leigh Spinners
* Leigh Town Hall
* Mather Lane Mill
* Morleys Hall, Astley
* Museum of Wigan Life
* Wigan Town Hall
* Trencherfield Mill
* Wigan Pier
* Winstanley Hall

Places of worship|

* All Saints' Church, Wigan
* Chowbent Chapel
* Christ Church, Ince-in-Makerfield
* Christ Church, Pennington
* St David's Church, Haigh
* St George's Church, Tyldesley
* St James and St Thomas, Poolstock
* St John's Church, Wigan
* St John the Baptist's Church, Atherton
* St John the Divine's Church, Pemberton
* St Joseph's Roman Catholic Church, Leigh
* St Jude's Church, Wigan
* St Mary the Virgin's Church, Leigh
* St Mary's Church, Wigan
* St Matthew's Church, Wigan
* St Michael and All Angels' Church, Howe Bridge
* Catholic Church of St Oswald and St Edmund Arrowsmith
* St Peter's Church, Hindley
* St Peter's Church, Westleigh
* Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church, Hindsford
* St Stephen's Church, Astley
* St Stephen's Church, Whelley
* St Thomas' Church, Ashton-in-Makerfield
* St Wifrid's Church, Standish
* Tyldesley Top Chapel

Education|

* St John Rigby College, Wigan
* University Technical College Wigan
* Wigan and Leigh College
* Winstanley College

Transportation|

* Adam Viaduct
* Appley Bridge railway station
* Atherton railway station
* Bryn railway station
* Gathurst railway station
* Gathurst Viaduct
* Hag Fold railway station
* Hindley railway station
* Leigh railway station
* Lower Ince railway station
* Orrell railway station
* Pemberton railway station
* Wigan bus station
* Wigan North Western railway station
* Wigan Wallgate railway station

Shopping complexes|

* The Galleries
* Grand Arcade

Sport and entertainment|

* DW Stadium
* Edge Hall Road
* Leigh Sports Village
* Wigan Casino

Others|

* Mab's Cross
* Mesnes Park
* Wigan Pier

Demolished|

* Atherton Hall
* Barnfield Mills
* Bedford Colliery
* Bickershaw Colliery
* Central Park stadium
* Chaddock Hall
* Gibfield Colliery
* Hilton Park
* May Mill
* Old Town Hall
* Parsonage Colliery
* Pennington railway station
* Springfield Park
* Standish Hall
* Tyldesley railway station
* Westleigh railway station
* Wigan Central railway station
* Wigan Darlington Street railway station

Lists|

* List of schools in Wigan
* List of mills in Wigan
* List of collieries in Lancashire since 1854
* Wigan area
* Leigh area

Listed buildings in|

* Abram
* Ashton-in-Makerfield
* Aspull
* Astley
* Atherton
* Billinge and Winstanley
* Golborne
* Haigh
* Hindley
* Ince
* Leigh
* Orrell
* Shevington
* Standish
* Tyldesley
* Wigan
* Worthington

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