Morpeth Town Hall
Henry Warne, Morpeth Civic Society
This article is about works to Morpeth’s Town Hall, but I cannot avoid mentioning the recent floods.
The cause of the floods was simple. There had been days of heavy rain with the rivers already full and the ground saturated. There was then an exceptional downpour on 6th September which had nowhere to go but to flood the adjacent land. Not all of the town centre flooded – but a large number of shops, restaurants and houses were affected. However most of these properties are now back in business, but a number of houses have yet to dry out. Amongst the buildings seriously affected was the Chantry and this will not be open before Easter 2009. The library building was very badly damaged – there is talk that the building may have to be written off.
The Town Hall itself largely escaped the floods but there was some water in the basement. This escape was all the more important since significant sums of money had just been spent upon restoration works. The building, designed by Sir John Vanburgh and completed in 1714, has suffered many shocks in its life, including fires and explosions, and has required numerous repairs and rebuilding. Despite this the front ‘stage set’ façade is true to the original. Until recently the building had suffered many years lack of maintenance. The roof leaked causing damage to the interior and the exterior stone fabric was failing in places and had lost much of its mortar. The interior had been despoiled by a number of unsympathetic additions and modifications. The Formica clad toilets just inside the entrance are perhaps the modification that would most likely cause Vanburgh to turn in his grave!
Happily the building is now on the path to recovery, thanks to funding from Castle Morpeth Borough Council and project management from the Greater Morpeth Development Trust. The roof was renewed some four years ago - a very necessary start given the damage to the interior caused by the leaks. The exterior stonework was cleaned and repaired in 2008 for the first time in many years. I was privileged to be taken on a tour up the scaffolding to see what was being done. Cracked and damaged stones were replaced or repaired. Just about everywhere the stonework was missing mortar, and this was being remedied. The repairs, which cost about half a million pounds, came just in time.
The interior of the Town Hall has undergone a partial restoration with more to come. Perhaps the most dramatic improvement so far is to the ballroom on the first floor and the stairs leading to it. This impressive room is lined with oak panelling and has a grand carved wood fireplace, but the ceiling had been damaged by the leaking roof and had alarming cracks. It has now been restored to its former glory. All signs of water damage are gone and the panels are back in place which, together with the fine wood floor, have been thoroughly cleaned.
Further works expect to include the restoration of much of the ground floor and the installation of a lift to make the building accessible to the disabled. In the medium term, subject to significant funds being available, there is a bold ambition to extend the rear of the building – which would make it more amenable to a wider range of uses. We trust that the credit crunch will not unduly hinder this.
City and County
February 2009
