West Memorial Hall facts for kids
Quick facts for kids West Memorial Hall |
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View from the north
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| General information | |
| Location | Caversham, Berkshire, UK |
| Coordinates | 51°28′02″N 0°58′18″W / 51.46716°N 0.97158°W |
| Completed | 1865-66 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Alfred Waterhouse |
The West Memorial Hall, also known as the West Memorial Institute, is a historic building in Caversham, Berkshire, UK. It was built during the Victorian era, around 1865-1866. A famous architect named Alfred Waterhouse designed it. The Hall used to be a church for Baptists, but today it has been changed into apartments where people live. It is a "Grade II listed building," which means it is very important and protected because of its history and special design.
Building Design and Features
The West Memorial Hall was designed by the well-known architect Alfred Waterhouse. He created it in a style called Gothic, which was popular in the 1800s. The building faces the street with its pointed roof end, called a gable.
The Hall is made from red bricks. It also has cool patterns made with blue bricks. You can see these blue bricks in lines above and below a big round window, called a rose window. There are also red and blue brick patterns above the windows on the ground floor.
The building has a unique rectangular tower for stairs. This tower leads up to a gallery inside. On the outside walls, you can see special supports called flying buttresses. These help hold up the walls.
In 1911, the Hall was made bigger on its east side. The new part was built to look very similar to the original building. It also has a central gable facing the road and a small decorative cross on the roof's highest point, just like the old part.
Gallery
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Flying buttresses on the west side of the Hall.
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A brickwork pattern above the ground floor windows created using alternating red and blue bricks.
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An ironwork detail from the 1911 extension to the Hall.
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The 1911 extension is in the same style as the original building.
History of the Hall
The West Memorial Hall was the very first Baptist church in Caversham. Most of the money to build it came from Reverend Ebenezer West. He was the head of a school called Amersham Hall. Reverend West also helped pay for a new Baptist church, built by the same architect, Alfred Waterhouse, about ten years later. This new church is across the street from the Hall.
After the new church opened, the Memorial Hall was used as a school. In 1911, it was expanded. The goal was to create more space for young men in Caversham to have fun and learn good values. It also provided more room for religious lessons on Sundays.
The Hall was officially recognized as a "Grade II listed building" on December 14, 1978. This means it is considered very important to the country's history and architecture. From 1980, it was used as the Caversham Dance Centre.
Around the year 2000, the Hall was changed into apartments. It is now known as The Waterhouse. In 2010, a plan to build more apartments next to the Hall was turned down. One reason was that the new plan did not fit well with the historic status of the West Memorial Hall.
See also
