Old Town Hall, Altrincham

Old Town Hall
White-rendered building with black detailing
Old Market Tavern in 2017, with the former town hall on the right
Old Town Hall, Altrincham is located in Greater Manchester
Old Town Hall, Altrincham
Location within Greater Manchester
Former namesUnicorn Hotel
Alternative names
Old Market Tavern
General information
TypeHotel with town hall (former); public house (closed)
Architectural style
Neoclassical
LocationOld Market Place, Altrincham, Greater Manchester, England
Coordinates53°23′22″N 2°21′02″W / 53.3894°N 2.3505°W / 53.3894; -2.3505
Years builtEarly 19th century (hotel)
1849 (town hall)
Closed2026
OwnerOld Market Manchester Ltd.
Design and construction
Designations
Listed Building – Grade II
Official name
Old Market Tavern
Designated12 July 1985
Reference no.1067960

The Old Town Hall (officially listed as Old Market Tavern) is a Grade II listed former municipal building on Old Market Place in Altrincham, a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, Greater Manchester, England. The listing records the complex as an early 19th‑century hotel incorporating the former town hall of 1849, originally a separate civic building that served as the headquarters of the old borough of Altrincham until the late 19th century. After civic functions moved to a new town hall on Market Street, the two buildings passed into commercial use and were later absorbed into a public house, the Old Market Tavern, which has been closed since February 2026.

History

The first town hall in Altrincham was a two-storey, six-sided building dating from the 17th century, which stood in the middle of Old Market Place. Also known as the Butter Market, it was erected in 1684 by Lord Delamer, the lord of the manor; the lower storey was open and furnished with seats "for the accommodation of parties bringing butter and other commodities to the market".[1] The upper floor was used for meetings of the court leet and other civic gatherings. The building also contained the town lock-up, and nearby were a set of stocks.[2]

The second town hall was a small neoclassical structure in the Old Market Place, built in brick with white stucco and completed in 1849, at which point the earlier building was demolished.[3] It was commissioned by the Earl of Stamford, whose country seat was at Dunham Massey Hall, to serve as a town hall and market hall for the borough.[4] The original borough of Altrincham was administered by a court leet, which met in the first-floor council chamber,[3] until it was abolished under the Municipal Corporations Act 1883.[5] The monthly Petty Sessions were also held here, while the market hall occupied the ground floor. The local volunteer fire brigade had space at the rear of the building for its manual fire engine.[2]

Following significant industrial growth, particularly in Broadheath after Benjamin Tilghman established the town as the British centre of the sandblasting industry,[6] Altrincham became an urban district in 1895.[7] The new council then decided to erect a replacement town hall on Market Street.[8] The Earl of Stamford subsequently sold the old town hall, together with the adjacent Unicorn Hotel, to Chester's Brewery Company.[2]

In 1973 the site was included within the newly designated Old Market Place conservation area.[9] On 12 July 1985, the building was designated a Grade II listed structure.[10]

The complex, later known as the Old Market Tavern, was sold by Punch Taverns to an undisclosed buyer in 2017.[11] The pub closed in February 2026 and is seeking new tenants.[12] As of April 2026, the freehold is owned by Old Market Manchester Ltd.[12] The Old Market Tavern stands in close proximity to another Grade II‑listed former pub, the Orange Tree.[13]

Architecture

The complex is built of brick with some rendered sections, stone detailing and slate roofs.[10] It has three storeys, with a double‑gabled front facing east, a shorter frontage towards Market Place and a two‑storey wing to one side.[14] The former town hall adjoins the north side; it projects slightly and has two storeys with three bays, including a carriage entrance below and a former council chamber above.[14] The town hall was described as "a handsome brick structure with rusticated stone-work facings".[1]

Many of the former hotel's external features were added in the late 19th century, including its plinth, window bands, decorative cornice, bargeboards, brick chimneys and a flat porch with columns and a heraldic shield.[14] Earlier work is simpler, with a series of window openings, some now blocked, and a doorway with an overlight that remains.[10] The Market Place side was also embellished in the late 19th century and has stepped ground‑floor windows and further openings above, now fitted with casements.[10]

The design of the old town hall involved a symmetrical three‑bay front facing Old Market Place, with a carriage entrance in the left bay and round‑headed windows in the other two.[10] The slightly projecting central bay carried an oriel window on the first floor and a clock tower with a bellcote and weather vane above.[15] The bell from the old Butter Market, cast in Little Budworth and given by Henry, Lord Delamer, in 1684, was installed in the bellcote and used both to strike the hours and to sound an alarm in the event of a fire.[2] Tall first‑floor window openings flank the oriel, and the roof is hipped.[14]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Bagshaw, Samuel (1850). History, Gazetteer and Directory of the County Palatine of Chester. Sheffield: S. Bagshaw. p. 518.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Nickson, Charles (1935). Bygone Altrincham: Traditions and History (PDF). Altrincham, Warrington & London: Mackie & Co. Limited. pp. 32–33. Retrieved 8 March 2025.
  3. 1 2 "Altrincham Walk". This is Cheshire. Retrieved 8 March 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  4. ↑ "Couple snubbed by Victorian society are celebrated in old home". The Guardian. 23 February 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2021.
  5. ↑ Municipal Corporations Act 1883 (46 & 46 Vict. Ch. 18) (PDF). 1883. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  6. ↑ "Tilghman's Patent Sand Blast Co".
  7. ↑ "Altrincham MB/UD". Vision of Britain. Retrieved 8 March 2021.
  8. ↑ Bayliss, Don (2006). "A Town in Crisis: Altrincham in the Mid-Nineteenth Century" (PDF). p. 35.
  9. ↑ Old Market Place Conservation Area | Conservation Area Appraisal (PDF) (Report). Trafford Council. October 2014. Retrieved 15 July 2026.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 Historic England. "Old Market Tavern (Grade II) (1067960)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 8 March 2025.
  11. ↑ Schouten, Charlie (20 November 2018). "Altrincham's Old Market Tavern sold". Place North West. Retrieved 8 March 2025.
  12. 1 2 "Old Market Tavern, Altrincham". Campaign for Real Ale. Retrieved 15 July 2026.
  13. ↑ Historic England. "Former Orange Tree Inn (Grade II) (1495433)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 15 July 2026.
  14. 1 2 3 4 "Old Market Tavern". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 15 July 2026.
  15. ↑ Hartwell, Clare; Hyde, Matthew; Hubbard, Edward; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2011) [1971], Cheshire, The Buildings of England, Yale University Press, p. 101, ISBN 978-0-300-17043-6
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