Changing faces of the Guildhall

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Changing faces of the Guildhall

For many centuries, Maidenhead’s original Guildhall, or Town Hall, stood in the centre of the High Street opposite Market Street (which was originally known as Shepherd’s Lane).

It replaced a very much earlier building situated a few yards to the east, in the centre of the High Street. The earlier building was known as the Copped Hall and a market house then also stood adjacent on the site.

The term ‘copped’ refers to a high-pitched, gabled roof. Erected before 1431, the Copped Hall originally consisted of two shops with solars or rooms above.

After passing through many owners, the building was sold in 1751 to the Corporation of Maidenhead, but was pulled down after purchase and the timbers used to build a new parsonage for St Mary’s Church. At this time, the original Market Hall and the adjacent Sergeant’s house were also demolished and their sites combined with that of the old Copped Hall to make a larger building site.

In 1777, a new Guildhall or Town Hall for Maidenhead was built in the neo-classical style, facing Market Street/Shepherd’s Lane. It was designed by Theodosius Keen, son of the prolific architect Henry Keen.

The builders engaged by the Corporation to construct this new Hall were Thomas Emblin and John Cooper, both celebrated families of builders. It is believed that Thomas Emblin was related to Henry Emblin, who carried out extensive work and repairs at St Georges Chapel, Windsor, in the 1780s. The two families were connected by marriage, as Thomas Emblin was married to John Cooper’s sister. The new Guildhall cost some £1,330 to build and consisted of a large upper chamber with a Corn Market beneath it.

The original Bear Inn (later the Bear Hotel) was adjacent to the 1777 Guildhall, and was relocated to its current position adjacent to Chapel Arches in the 1840s.

Behind the Guildhall there was a lock-up and another inn, known as the Fighting Cocks. The Guildhall was extensively altered in 1878 when the seating capacity of the main hall was more than doubled.

One of the principal memorials in the Guildhall was to the officers and men of Maidenhead who died during the Boer War (1899 to 1902). This is now located in the present Town Hall.

In 1962, a new Town Hall was erected in St Ives Road on the site of St Ives House—originally a manor house and later a hotel. Built at a cost of £400,000, this was built to enable the local government departments for Windsor and Maidenhead to be centralised.

A new nine-storey building dominating the Maidenhead skyline, known as Berkshire House, was then constructed on the site of the 1777 Guildhall by the architectural firm Hilderbrand & Glicher.

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