Yelde Hall facts for kids
Quick facts for kids The Yelde Hall |
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The Yelde Hall
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| Location | Market Place, Chippenham |
| Built | 1450 |
| Architectural style(s) | Medieval style |
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Listed Building – Grade I
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| Official name: The Yelde Hall and the Council Chamber | |
| Designated | 25 April 1950 |
| Reference no. | 1267996 |
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The Yelde Hall is a very old and important building in Chippenham, Wiltshire, England. It's located right in the Market Place. For a long time, it was where the local council met to make decisions for the town. Today, it's a special building that's protected as a Grade I listed building, meaning it's historically very important.
Contents
The Yelde Hall: A Look Back in Time
The Yelde Hall was built around the year 1450. It has a unique design, with one part sticking out towards the Market Place. This part has steps leading up to a door. Above the door, there's a window and two small pointed roofs, called gables.
One of these gables has a carving of the town's special symbol, called the town arms. It also shows the letters "JS 1776." These letters stand for John Scott, who was the town's bailiff (a local official) at that time. The other gable used to have a clock, but it was removed in 1851.
What Was the Yelde Hall Used For?
This building had many different jobs over the centuries!
- The basement was used as a jail for prisoners.
- The ground floor was a courtroom where legal cases were heard.
- The upstairs area was the council chamber. This is where the Chippenham Borough Council met. A council is a group of people who make rules and decisions for a town or city.
From 1822, a savings bank also had an office in the building. It was open on Saturday mornings for people to save their money.
From Council to Military Training
In 1834, the town council moved to a new building, the Chippenham Town Hall. After that, the Yelde Hall became a place for military training.
- In 1846, it became the drill hall for the Chippenham Volunteer Rifle Corps. A drill hall is where soldiers practice their drills and training.
- Over the years, this group changed names several times. It became part of the Wiltshire Regiment.
- The soldiers used the hall until 1911 when they moved to a different location.
- The building was also used by the Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry, another military group. They used it as their headquarters until 1920.
Firefighters, Museums, and Tourist Information
The Yelde Hall continued to serve the community in different ways.
- From 1870, the Fire Brigade used part of the building. By 1911, they used almost the whole hall until 1945.
- After some repairs in the 1950s, the building became the Chippenham Museum in 1963. The museum stayed there until 1999 when it moved to a new spot.
- In 2003, the Yelde Hall became the North Wiltshire Tourist Information Centre. This is where visitors could get maps and learn about things to do in the area. This center moved out in 2012.
- After another update in 2012, the Yelde Hall reopened. It is now used as an extension of the Chippenham Museum and Heritage Centre, helping to tell the town's long history.
See also
- List of Grade I listed buildings in Wiltshire
