Elland Town Hall

The first municipal building in the town was a small square building at the south end of Southgate which was completed in 1821.^[2] The building, which was known as the "Town's Room", was used as a lock-up and as an office for parish officials: it had an arched doorway, gothic windows and a sign above the doorway, quoting the Book of Proverbs Chapter 28, Clause 7, which read "whoso keeps the law is wise".^[2] The local board of health, which was established in November 1852, used the Town's Room as its regular meeting place.^[3]

In the early 1880s, the local board decided that the town needed an events venue capable of hosting large public events: the site they chose was directly opposite the old Town's Room.^[2] A design competition was won by Charles Frederick Luke Horsfall from Halifax.^[4] The foundation stone for the new building was laid on 21 June 1887.^[5] It was designed in the Italianate style, built in brown brick at a cost of £7,000 and was officially opened by the diplomat John Savile, of Rufford Abbey, on 19 September 1888.^[1] The design involved a symmetrical main frontage with three bays facing onto the corner of Southgate and Huddersfield Road; the central bay, which slightly projected forward, featured a flight of steps leading up to a pair of round headed doorways with keystones flanked by pairs of full-height Corinthian order pilasters supporting an entablature and a modillioned pediment with a coat of arms in the tympanum.^[1] The central bay also featured a prominent Venetian window with a balcony and a balustrade on the first floor, while the outer bays were fenestrated with round headed sash windows on both floors.^[1] The roof was enhanced by a pair of mansard pavilions and by a small central cupola with a weather vane.^[1] Internally, the principal room was the assembly hall which could accommodate 1,000 people.^[5]

Following significant population growth, largely associated with Elland's status as a market town, the area was advanced to the status of urban district in 1894.^[6] The new council chose to procure new council offices on a site just to the north of the town hall.^[5] In June 1909 a clock, by J. Smith & Sons,^[7] was installed in the cupola: it was a gift to the town from Lewis Mackrell, in memory of his father, James Mackrell, who had been the proprietor of a local engineering company.^[8][9]

The town hall continued to be used for concerts and public events but was converted for use as the Town Hall Cinema in October 1909.^[10][11] The building was renamed the Palladium Cinema in 1920 and continued to operate in that capacity until June 1959.^[10][12] It then operated for as a bingo hall until 1977 and subsequently as a snooker club,^[10] but had to be fully restored after being badly damaged in a fire in November 1994.^[5] It then functioned as a fitness centre before being returned to use as a banqueting facility.^[10] Meanwhile, the ground floor on the Southgate side of the building, which operated as a row of shops for much of the 20th century, has more recently been fitted out for restaurant use.^[10]

• Listed buildings in Elland