Bradford City Hall
Encyclopedia
Bradford City Hall is a Grade I listed, 19th century town hall in Centenary Square, Bradford
, West Yorkshire
, England
, and is notable for its landmark bell/clock tower.
and Mawson, and opened in 1873.City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council: History of City Hall.
Before its relocation, between 1847 to 1872, the town hall had been the Fire Station House in Swain Street. In 1869 a new triangular site was purchased, and a competition held for a design to rival the town halls of Leeds
and Halifax.Images of England: Grade I listing details for City Hall. The local firm of Lockwood and Mawson was chosen over the other 31 entries. It was built by John Ives & Son of Shipley
and took three years to build at a cost of £100,000. It was opened on 9 September 1873, on a very wet day by Matthew Thompson, the mayor
.
It was first extended in 1909, to a design by Norman Shaw
and executed by architect F.E.P. Edwards, with another council chamber, more committee rooms and a banqueting hall. It was extended again in 1914 with a new entrance and staircase in baroque
marble by William Williamson and listed grade I on 14 June 1963.
's prominence, and the building was improved at a cost of £12,000. In 1992 the bells stopped due to decay of the bell frame; in 1997 the bells were repaired with National Lottery
funds.
by turning the city's nine Christmas tree
s into woodchips
as fuel for new heating boiler
s to be installed in early 2008. An access tunnel was dug from the roadway to install the boilers: there is a Powerpoint
description of the process, with images of the old and new boilers, here.
on Saint David's Day
and the flag of Australia
on Australia Day
. Flag use in response to major world disasters is made according to Government guidelines. The flags also reflect royal
events, such as coronation
s and weddings.
The building is set in Centenary Square, which was developed and pedestrianised in 1997, the city's centenary. Staff give tours of the building on request. Annually in September the City Hall holds a heritage weekend, when visitors can see more of the building. During two special open days per year, 1200 children are invited to meet the mayor, learn about the building and the council, do re-enactments and gain civic pride.
In 2000, Barbara Jane Harrison
was commemorated in a memorial display in the City Hall. In October 2006 the building was illuminated for Bradford Festival by artist Patrice Warrener
. In 2007 the City Hall filled in for Manchester Crown Court for the duration of the trial of Tracy Barlow
in Coronation Street
.
" to mark the three minutes' silence for those who died due to terrorism
. When an eminent Bradfordian dies, the City Hall flags fly at half mast
until the funeral is over, while the minute bell
rings for an hour after receipt of notice, and for an hour at the time of the funeral. At the memorial in 2005 of the 1985 Bradford City stadium fire, "Dozens of people broke down in tears as the City Hall bells played You'll Never Walk Alone
and Abide with Me
in tribute to the victims."Telegraph
, 11 May 2005. However the bells normally play happier tunes, and in 2001 there was talk of replacing the old computer application
which controlled the bells, so that they could play pop music
. The bells can now be programmed to play any tune, subject to musical arrangement and technical limitations. The bells have played No Matter What
several times in 2001, when Whistle Down the Wind
was playing at the Alhambra
; the operator of the bells was able to see the theatre steps from the bell tower, and timed the peals with the audience's exit. This meant that the superintendent had to undertake the long climb up the tower at 10.30pm every day for a week, as the bell system was still under repair. In 2010, the bells played the theme tune from Coronation Street
when the cast was filming in the area.
. The bell tower
was inspired by Palazzo Vecchio
in Florence
. It contains 13 bells, which ring every 15 minutes, though the clock was not added until 1937. The top of the tower is 220 feet (67.1 m) high. The bells, which cost £5,000, weigh 17 tons and play tunes at midday and late afternoon plus carols
in December. There are 35 statues of past monarchs in chronological order on the façade, with Victoria
and Elizabeth I
on either side of the main entrance. The London firm Farmer & Brindley
carved them from Cliffe Wood stone, from the local quarry on Bolton Road, at a cost of £63 each. Interestingly, the line of monarchs includes Oliver Cromwell
.NGFL: Bradford City Hall description. There is a flush bracket
on the building with a code number once used to log the height above sea level. A full architectural description is here.
is a 19th century overmantel
and frieze
carved by C.R. Millar. The frieze carries the Bradford city motto: Labor omnia vincit
(Hard work conquers all), reflecting the ethos of an industrial
city, and the work ethic
of the Evangelical
movement represented by many local chapel
s. The figures on the frieze represent the wool
trade between Bradford and the world, besides architecture
and the arts
.
Bradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
, West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and is notable for its landmark bell/clock tower.
As town hall
The building was designed by LockwoodHenry Francis Lockwood
Henry Francis Lockwood was an influential architect, born at Doncaster on 18 September 1811. His father and grandfather were mayors of Doncaster. He married Emma Day whose great uncle, Charles Day , made a fortune through the Day and Martin company...
and Mawson, and opened in 1873.City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council: History of City Hall.
Before its relocation, between 1847 to 1872, the town hall had been the Fire Station House in Swain Street. In 1869 a new triangular site was purchased, and a competition held for a design to rival the town halls of Leeds
Leeds Town Hall
Leeds Town Hall was built between 1853 and 1858 on Park Lane , Leeds, West Yorkshire, England to a design by architect Cuthbert Brodrick.-Background:...
and Halifax.Images of England: Grade I listing details for City Hall. The local firm of Lockwood and Mawson was chosen over the other 31 entries. It was built by John Ives & Son of Shipley
Shipley, West Yorkshire
Shipley is a town in West Yorkshire, England, by the River Aire and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, north of Bradford and north-west of Leeds....
and took three years to build at a cost of £100,000. It was opened on 9 September 1873, on a very wet day by Matthew Thompson, the mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
.
It was first extended in 1909, to a design by Norman Shaw
Richard Norman Shaw
Richard Norman Shaw RA , was an influential Scottish architect from the 1870s to the 1900s, known for his country houses and for commercial buildings.-Life:...
and executed by architect F.E.P. Edwards, with another council chamber, more committee rooms and a banqueting hall. It was extended again in 1914 with a new entrance and staircase in baroque
Neo-baroque
The Baroque Revival or Neo-baroque was an architectural style of the late 19th century. The term is used to describe architecture which displays important aspects of Baroque style, but is not of the Baroque period proper—i.e., the 17th and 18th centuries.Some examples of Neo-baroque architecture:*...
marble by William Williamson and listed grade I on 14 June 1963.
As city hall
In 1965 the name was changed to City Hall to reflect BradfordBradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
's prominence, and the building was improved at a cost of £12,000. In 1992 the bells stopped due to decay of the bell frame; in 1997 the bells were repaired with National Lottery
National Lottery (United Kingdom)
The National Lottery is the state-franchised national lottery in the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man.It is operated by Camelot Group, to whom the licence was granted in 1994, 2001 and again in 2007. The lottery is regulated by the National Lottery Commission, and was established by the then...
funds.
Conservation of resources
In December 2007 the City Hall went greenEnvironmentalism
Environmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology and social movement regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements...
by turning the city's nine Christmas tree
Christmas tree
The Christmas tree is a decorated evergreen coniferous tree, real or artificial, and a tradition associated with the celebration of Christmas. The tradition of decorating an evergreen tree at Christmas started in Livonia and Germany in the 16th century...
s into woodchips
Woodchips
Woodchips are a medium-sized solid material made by cutting, or chipping, larger pieces of wood. Woodchips may be used as a biomass solid fuel. They may also be used as an organic mulch in gardening, landscaping, restoration ecology and mushroom cultivation...
as fuel for new heating boiler
Boiler
A boiler is a closed vessel in which water or other fluid is heated. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications.-Materials:...
s to be installed in early 2008. An access tunnel was dug from the roadway to install the boilers: there is a Powerpoint
Microsoft PowerPoint
Microsoft PowerPoint, usually just called PowerPoint, is a non-free commercial presentation program developed by Microsoft. It is part of the Microsoft Office suite, and runs on Microsoft Windows and Apple's Mac OS X operating system...
description of the process, with images of the old and new boilers, here.
In public context
The two flagpoles carry the flag of WalesFlag of Wales
The Flag of Wales consists of a red dragon passant on a green and white field. As with many heraldic charges, the exact representation of the dragon is not standardised and many renderings exist....
on Saint David's Day
Saint David's Day
Saint David's Day is the feast day of Saint David, the patron saint of Wales, and falls on 1 March each year. The date of 1 March was chosen in remembrance of the death of Saint David. Tradition holds that he died on that day in 589...
and the flag of Australia
Flag of Australia
The flag of Australia is a defaced Blue Ensign: a blue field with the Union Flag in the canton , and a large white seven-pointed star known as the Commonwealth Star in the lower hoist quarter...
on Australia Day
Australia Day
Australia Day is the official national day of Australia...
. Flag use in response to major world disasters is made according to Government guidelines. The flags also reflect royal
British Royal Family
The British Royal Family is the group of close relatives of the monarch of the United Kingdom. The term is also commonly applied to the same group of people as the relations of the monarch in her or his role as sovereign of any of the other Commonwealth realms, thus sometimes at variance with...
events, such as coronation
Coronation
A coronation is a ceremony marking the formal investiture of a monarch and/or their consort with regal power, usually involving the placement of a crown upon their head and the presentation of other items of regalia...
s and weddings.
The building is set in Centenary Square, which was developed and pedestrianised in 1997, the city's centenary. Staff give tours of the building on request. Annually in September the City Hall holds a heritage weekend, when visitors can see more of the building. During two special open days per year, 1200 children are invited to meet the mayor, learn about the building and the council, do re-enactments and gain civic pride.
In 2000, Barbara Jane Harrison
Barbara Jane Harrison
Barbara Jane Harrison, GC , was a British air stewardess. She is one of four women to have been awarded the George Cross for heroism, and the only one of the four not to have served with the Special Operations Executive in occupied France during the Second World War...
was commemorated in a memorial display in the City Hall. In October 2006 the building was illuminated for Bradford Festival by artist Patrice Warrener
Patrice Warrener
Patrice Warrener is a French light artist, mostly known for his Chromolithe Polychromatic Illumination System. Warrener has made more than 60 chromolithe installations over the last fifteen years, lighting up buildings in close to a dozen different nations...
. In 2007 the City Hall filled in for Manchester Crown Court for the duration of the trial of Tracy Barlow
Tracy Barlow
Tracy Lynette Barlow is a fictional character in the British television soap opera Coronation Street. She is currently portrayed, since 2002, by Kate Ford, the latest in a series of actresses who have played Tracy at various ages...
in Coronation Street
Coronation Street
Coronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...
.
Bells
The bells have played "The Star-Spangled BannerThe Star-Spangled Banner
"The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States of America. The lyrics come from "Defence of Fort McHenry", a poem written in 1814 by the 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet, Francis Scott Key, after witnessing the bombardment of Fort McHenry by the British Royal Navy ships...
" to mark the three minutes' silence for those who died due to terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
. When an eminent Bradfordian dies, the City Hall flags fly at half mast
Half-staff
Half-staff is the American term for to describe a flag flying a flag below the summit of the flagpole . The rest of the English-speaking world uses the term half-mast. Technically the flag should be flown one breadth lower to allow for the invisible flag of death...
until the funeral is over, while the minute bell
Funeral toll
Church bells are sometimes rung slowly ' when a person dies or at funeral services.Church bells are rung in three basic ways: normal ringing, chiming, or tolling...
rings for an hour after receipt of notice, and for an hour at the time of the funeral. At the memorial in 2005 of the 1985 Bradford City stadium fire, "Dozens of people broke down in tears as the City Hall bells played You'll Never Walk Alone
You'll Never Walk Alone (song)
"You'll Never Walk Alone" is a show tune from the 1945 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel.In the musical, in the second act, Nettie Fowler, the cousin of the female protagonist Julie Jordan, sings "You'll Never Walk Alone" to comfort and encourage Julie when her husband, Billy Bigelow, the...
and Abide with Me
Abide With Me
The hymn tune most often used with this hymn is "Eventide" composed by William Henry Monk in 1861.Alternate tunes include:* "Abide with Me," Henry Lyte, 1847* "Morecambe", Frederick C...
in tribute to the victims."Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
, 11 May 2005. However the bells normally play happier tunes, and in 2001 there was talk of replacing the old computer application
Application software
Application software, also known as an application or an "app", is computer software designed to help the user to perform specific tasks. Examples include enterprise software, accounting software, office suites, graphics software and media players. Many application programs deal principally with...
which controlled the bells, so that they could play pop music
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
. The bells can now be programmed to play any tune, subject to musical arrangement and technical limitations. The bells have played No Matter What
No Matter What (Boyzone song)
"No Matter What" is a song from the 1996 musical Whistle Down the Wind, written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Jim Steinman and popularized by the group Boyzone. The song reached #1 on the UK Singles Chart, and was the only Boyzone hit to become popular in the U.S. Jewels & Stone did a remix for the...
several times in 2001, when Whistle Down the Wind
Whistle Down the Wind (musical)
Whistle Down the Wind is a musical based on the 1961 film Whistle Down the Wind with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Jim Steinman, known for his work with Meat Loaf and Bonnie Tyler.-Stage Premiere:...
was playing at the Alhambra
Bradford Alhambra
The Bradford Alhambra is a theatre in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. It was built in 1913 at a cost of £20,000 for theatre impresario Francis Laidler, and opened on Wednesday 18 March 1914. In 1964 Bradford City Council bought the Alhambra for £78,900. In 1974 it was designated a Grade II...
; the operator of the bells was able to see the theatre steps from the bell tower, and timed the peals with the audience's exit. This meant that the superintendent had to undertake the long climb up the tower at 10.30pm every day for a week, as the bell system was still under repair. In 2010, the bells played the theme tune from Coronation Street
Coronation Street
Coronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...
when the cast was filming in the area.
Exterior
It was designed in the Venetian styleVenetian Gothic architecture
Venetian Gothic is a term given to an architectural style combining use of the Gothic lancet arch with Byzantine and Moorish architecture influences. The style originated in 14th century Venice with the confluence of Byzantine styles from Constantinople, Arab influences from Moorish Spain and early...
. The bell tower
Bell tower
A bell tower is a tower which contains one or more bells, or which is designed to hold bells, even if it has none. In the European tradition, such a tower most commonly serves as part of a church and contains church bells. When attached to a city hall or other civic building, especially in...
was inspired by Palazzo Vecchio
Palazzo Vecchio
The Palazzo Vecchio is the town hall of Florence, Italy. This massive, Romanesque, crenellated fortress-palace is among the most impressive town halls of Tuscany...
in Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
. It contains 13 bells, which ring every 15 minutes, though the clock was not added until 1937. The top of the tower is 220 feet (67.1 m) high. The bells, which cost £5,000, weigh 17 tons and play tunes at midday and late afternoon plus carols
Christmas carol
A Christmas carol is a carol whose lyrics are on the theme of Christmas or the winter season in general and which are traditionally sung in the period before Christmas.-History:...
in December. There are 35 statues of past monarchs in chronological order on the façade, with Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
and Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
on either side of the main entrance. The London firm Farmer & Brindley
Farmer & Brindley
Farmer & Brindley was a firm of architectural sculptors and ornamentalists based in London, founded by William Farmer and William Brindley , who contributed to some of the greatest structures of the Victorian era....
carved them from Cliffe Wood stone, from the local quarry on Bolton Road, at a cost of £63 each. Interestingly, the line of monarchs includes Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
.NGFL: Bradford City Hall description. There is a flush bracket
Benchmark (surveying)
The term bench mark, or benchmark, originates from the chiseled horizontal marks that surveyors made in stone structures, into which an angle-iron could be placed to form a "bench" for a leveling rod, thus ensuring that a leveling rod could be accurately repositioned in the same place in the future...
on the building with a code number once used to log the height above sea level. A full architectural description is here.
Interior
In the banqueting hallBanquet
A banquet is a large meal or feast, complete with main courses and desserts. It usually serves a purpose such as a charitable gathering, a ceremony, or a celebration, and is often preceded or followed by speeches in honour of someone....
is a 19th century overmantel
Overdoor
An "overdoor" is a painting, bas-relief or decorative panel, generally in a horizontal format, that is set, typically within ornamental mouldings, over a door, or was originally intended for this purpose.The overdoor is usually architectural in form, but may take the form of a cartouche in Rococo...
and frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
carved by C.R. Millar. The frieze carries the Bradford city motto: Labor omnia vincit
Labor omnia vincit
Labor omnia vincit is a Latin phrase meaning "Hard work conquers all". The phrase appears in Virgil's Georgics, Book I, in the form Labor omnia uicit improbus...
(Hard work conquers all), reflecting the ethos of an industrial
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
city, and the work ethic
Work ethic
Work ethic is a set of values based on hard work and diligence. It is also a belief in the moral benefit of work and its ability to enhance character. An example would be the Protestant work ethic...
of the Evangelical
Lutheranism
Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
movement represented by many local chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
s. The figures on the frieze represent the wool
Wool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
trade between Bradford and the world, besides architecture
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
and the arts
The arts
The arts are a vast subdivision of culture, composed of many creative endeavors and disciplines. It is a broader term than "art", which as a description of a field usually means only the visual arts. The arts encompass visual arts, literary arts and the performing arts – music, theatre, dance and...
.
External links
- Images of England: Grade I listing details for City Hall, no. 1.5111.
- City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council: History of City Hall.
- BBC: Three 360-degree panoramas of interior rooms of City Hall (one on page, two via links)
- Haworth Village: 360-degree panorama of Centenary Square with City Hall at night.