Dewsbury Town Hall, including former Magistrates’ Court

Dewsbury Town Hall, including former Magistrates' Court

Dewsbury Town Hall was built between 1886 and 1889 to designs by Henry Holtom and George Arthur Fox of Dewsbury in what they termed the 'Mixed Renaissance' style. The building is constructed of ashlar sandstone from the Holmfirth quarries with slate roofs.

The town hall forms an irregular U-shaped plan of three storeys with attics, though the courthouse and former police station section is two storeys and the Victoria Hall rises open to the roof. The main entrance faces west/north-west onto Market Square, with a further entrance to the north on Wakefield Old Road. The three wings comprise the west/north-west wing, containing the main entrance hall at first-floor level and formal rooms at second-floor level; the north wing, with various offices and meeting rooms; and the south/south-east wing on Town Hall Way, housing the council chamber and courthouse. The Victoria Hall sits at the centre of the U-shape, connected to the west/north-west and north wings by short corridors. The land slopes down from north-east to south-west, making the ground floor semi-sunken on the northern side. Some infill construction between the north wing and Victoria Hall was added by 1922 (first shown on the Ordnance Survey 1:2500 map of that year), and a new public entrance was created on the ground floor of the front elevation.

The front elevation to the west/north-west is symmetrical with five bays and two rounded corner bays. The ground and first floors are rusticated, with vermiculated quoins at ground-floor level. Windows are square-headed at ground and first floors, with sunken aprons to the first floor. At second-floor level the windows are round-headed with keystones, imposts and sunken aprons. The central bay breaks forward, approached by a flight of splayed stone steps leading to an ornate round-arched first-floor entrance. This entrance has wrought-iron gates and fan screen within a portico of paired Ionic columns supporting a dentiled entablature. Above, at second-floor level, is a balustraded balcony accessed from another round-arched doorway flanked by paired Composite and Tuscan columns supporting a dentiled entablature and triangular pediment. The richly-carved tympanum features the Dewsbury Seal with the St Paulinus Cross. The central bay is crowned by a large two-tier clock tower with domed top and cupola. The first tier has a round-arched opening on each face surmounted by a triangular pediment on paired Composite columns, with a large urn at each corner. The second tier has a clock on each face beneath a segmental pediment.

The outer bays also break forward slightly. The left-hand bay has an inserted public entrance at ground-floor level (formerly a window). At second-floor level, narrow balustraded balconies front round-arched doorways flanked by Composite columns supporting dentiled entablatures and triangular pediments with richly-carved tympana. These are in turn flanked by empty niches and Tuscan columns. The outer bays and two rounded corner bays are each surmounted by French-type pavilion roofs with iron rails and segmental pedimented dormers. A balustraded parapet runs across the elevation.

The north elevation facing Wakefield Old Road extends fifteen bays and has similar features to the principal elevation, with square-headed windows at ground and first floors and round-headed windows with keystones and an impost band at second-floor level, plus a dentiled eaves cornice. The ground slopes noticeably downwards from left to right, leaving the ground floor either completely or partially sunken. Ornate wrought-iron railings mounted on a low stone wall protect the ground-floor windows and lightwells.

The central three bays break forward slightly and are rusticated at ground and first floors, with vermiculated quoins at ground-floor level. Stone steps lead up to a round-arched first-floor entrance with a broken segmental pediment. A later iron and glass canopy (first shown on the Ordnance Survey 1:2500 map of 1933) extends across the three bays and bears the sign 'WAKEFIELD ROAD ENTRANCE'. At second-floor level, three round-headed windows are separated by paired Composite pilasters, flanked by outer Tuscan pilasters. The central three bays are surmounted by a French-type pavilion roof with iron rails, a triangular-pedimented dormer and balustrade.

The outer bays mirror those of the principal elevation, with round-arched doorways and narrow balustraded balconies at second-floor level and pavilion roofs. The left-hand outer bay at the north-east end has a square-headed doorway at first-floor level. To its left is the foundation stone, which reads: 'THIS STONE WAS LAID / BY / THOMAS BATEMAN FOX, / ALDERMAN & MAYOR / OF THE BOROUGH, / OCTOBER 12TH. 1886. / TREVOR C. EDWARDS, HENRY HOLTOM, / TOWN CLERK. ARCHITECT.'

The south/south-east elevation facing Town Hall Way is of ashlar but plainer in treatment than the other two elevations, except for the left-hand bay at the south-west end which matches the outer bays of the principal elevations. The roofline varies, with square-headed windows at ground and first floors, round-headed windows with keystones and an impost band at second-floor level, and projecting bracketed sills at first and second floors. A bracketed eaves cornice runs along the elevation. The central block is taller and has four long windows at second-floor level with sunken aprons, lighting the Council Chamber. The right-hand block at the south-east end is two storeys with five long windows at first-floor level for the courthouse. Three square-headed doorways serve this side of the building.

From the rear elevation the distinct elements of the building's plan are visible. The ground slopes down from right to left. The rear is largely of rock-faced stonework with ashlar details. To the left at the south-east end stands a prominent ashlar staircase tower (providing access to the courthouse public gallery) at the rear of the south/south-east wing. This wing incorporates a series of segmental windows with iron bars at ground-floor level, marking the former police cells. At the centre is a large block with hipped roof and blank upper storeys—the Victoria Hall—which has square-headed windows with round-headed windows above on its side elevations. To the right is the rear of the north wing, with similar features to the principal elevations.

The public entrance to the ground floor leads into a reception foyer and exhibition space with various offices and stores beyond. Directly below the first-floor entrance vestibule is a strong room with a Milners' Patent Thief-Resisting door with brass fittings. A dog-leg staircase with cast-iron balusters and newel posts and a timber handrail leads up to the first-floor level.

The first-floor main entrance vestibule, providing access from Market Place, is faced in ashlar with a domed ceiling. It has a mosaic-tiled floor incorporating the Dewsbury Seal, geometric-patterned borders and floral details. Two large brass dedication plaques are mounted on the walls. A pair of round-arched double doorways provide access to the first-floor hallway. The doorways have moulded keystones, imposts and pilasters, with a red marble Ionic column between them. They are fitted with oak panelled doors with fanlights, stained-glass and painted-glass panels, and brass door furniture. Above the two doors is a carving of the Dewsbury Seal.

The first-floor hallway is faced in ashlar with Tuscan pilasters, dado rails and skirtings. It has an ornate plaster ceiling supported on paired red marble Tuscan columns with ashlar bases, and a mosaic-tiled floor with geometric-patterned borders and floral details. There are two stained- and painted-glass windows. The one to the left depicts aspects of Dewsbury's trade, shopping and transport against a background showing a street map of the town centre in the 1950s; it was unveiled on 1st May 1952. The one to the right illustrates the coats of arms of the various Lords of the Manor of Dewsbury back to Edward the Confessor. A pair of round-arched doorways with moulded keystones and panelled oak double doors with fanlights above provide access to the Victoria Hall. The doors have stained- and painted-glass panels and brass door furniture. The Victoria Hall itself, reached from a short corridor with oak dado panelling and stained- and painted-glass windows, is open to the roof with a stage at the east end. It has an ornate coved plaster ceiling and a horseshoe balcony with decorated front.

Corridors to the north and south/south-east wings provide access to several offices and meeting rooms. These include, in the south/south-east wing, the Members' Room, which has a red marble fireplace with oak overmantel and dado panelling, and a series of individually framed photographs of the former mayors of Dewsbury mounted above the dado rail. At the far end of the south/south-east wing is the courthouse. The courthouse is open to the roof and has a decorated plaster cornice with a central ceiling rose with ventilation grill. It has a series of large round-headed windows with keystones and an impost band to the south/south-east side. The bench is to the west and the public gallery to the east, together with the dock, court officials' desks, well of the court, witness box and reporters' desks. A cast-iron staircase leads down from the dock to the cells at ground-floor level, which are lined with white glazed tiles. The staircase tower to the rear of the courthouse has an open-string staircase with stone treads, cast-iron balusters and newel posts, and a timber handrail.

The dog-leg staircase from first to second floor has stone treads, large ashlar newel posts, ashlar balusters and wide red marble handrails. The second-floor hallway is embellished with Corinthian pilasters, oak dado panelling and an ornate plaster ceiling supported on Corinthian columns. There is a mosaic-tiled floor with borders and floral details, and a large Venetian stained- and painted-glass window depicting St Paulinus preaching Christianity on the bank of the River Calder in 627 AD. The side panels show King Edwin and Queen Ethelburga. Two additional stained- and painted-glass windows depict Commerce and Science. Above the staircase is a painted-glass roof light bearing the Dewsbury Seal in a coved surround. A pair of round-arched doorways with panelled oak double doors with fanlights above provide access to the Victoria Hall balcony. The doors have painted- and stained-glass panels and brass door furniture. A further series of oak doorways with triangular pediments and panelled doors lead from the second-floor hallway to the Ceremony Room, Mayor's Parlour and Mayor's Reception Room. These large formal rooms have oak dado panelling, oak fireplace surrounds with elaborately carved overmantels, oak doorways with triangular pediments and panelled doors, and ornate plaster ceilings. The Mayor's Parlour has an oak-panelled alcove with seating to the right-hand side of the fireplace.

A short corridor to the south/south-east wing provides access to the Council Chamber, which has an ornate coved plaster ceiling, oak panelling below the windows, and oak doorways with triangular and broken pediments. An oak canopy is mounted on the south/south-east side wall.