The Corn Exchange is an events and concert venue located in the Market Place in
Newbury,
Berkshire, England. The structure, which was commissioned as a
corn exchange
A corn exchange is a building where merchants trade grains. The word "corn" in British English denotes all cereal grains, such as wheat and barley; in the United States these buildings were called grain exchange. Such trade was common in towns ...
and is now used as an events venue, is a Grade II
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
.
History
The first location where merchants could trade in agricultural products in Newbury was a guildhall in the Market Place which was completed in 1611. After becoming very dilapidated and an obstruction to traffic, it was demolished in 1828.
The current building was designed by James Dodd in the
neoclassical style
Neoclassical architecture is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy and France. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing sty ...
, built in
ashlar stone at a cost of £6,000 and was officially opened on 4 June 1862. The design involved a symmetrical main frontage of three bays facing onto the Market Place. The central bay featured a round headed doorway with an
archivolt
An archivolt (or voussure) is an ornamental moulding or band following the curve on the underside of an arch.
It is composed of bands of ornamental mouldings (or other architectural elements) surrounding an arched opening, corresponding to the ...
and a
keystone while the outer bays were fenestrated by round headed windows with archivolts and keystones. All three bays were decorated by
patera
In the material culture of classical antiquity, a ''phiale'' ( ) or ''patera'' () is a shallow ceramic or metal libation bowl. It often has a bulbous indentation (''omphalos'', "bellybutton") in the center underside to facilitate holding it, in ...
e above the openings and were flanked by pairs of
Corinthian order columns supporting an
entablature and a
pediment
Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape.
Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds.
A pedim ...
with a
quatrefoil in the
tympanum. Internally, the principal room was a full-height assembly hall.
[
In the late 19th century, many important celebrations took place in the corn exchange. A promenade concert was held there on 10 March 1863 to celebrate the marriage of the ]Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...
to Princess Alexandra. A reception was held there on 26 August 1879 to celebrate the cutting of the first sod on the Didcot, Newbury and Southampton Railway
The Didcot, Newbury and Southampton Railway (DN&SR) was a cross-country railway running north–south between Didcot, Newbury and Winchester. Its promoters intended an independent route to Southampton and envisaged heavy traffic from the Midl ...
by Catherine, Countess of Carnarvon, and a public dinner was held there on 12 April 1882 to celebrate the opening of the railway by Lady Loyd-Lindsay.
The use of the building as a corn exchange declined significantly in the wake of the Great Depression of British Agriculture
The Great Depression of British Agriculture occurred during the late nineteenth century and is usually dated from 1873 to 1896. Contemporaneous with the global Long Depression, Britain's agricultural depression was caused by the dramatic fall in g ...
in the late 19th century. The building became an events and concert venue in the mid-20th century and, in May 1966, performers included the band, ''The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...
'': there was a serious disagreement when Keith Moon and John Entwistle came in late to a performance to see bandmates Pete Townshend
Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is co-founder, leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s.
Townsh ...
and Roger Daltrey
Roger Harry Daltrey (born 1 March 1944) is an English singer, musician and actor. He is a co-founder and the lead singer of the rock band The Who.
Daltrey's hit songs with The Who include " My Generation", " Pinball Wizard", " Won't Get Fooled ...
playing with members of a support act. Moon suffered a black eye and an injured leg in the ensuing melee
A melee ( or , French: mêlée ) or pell-mell is disorganized hand-to-hand combat in battles fought at abnormally close range with little central control once it starts. In military aviation, a melee has been defined as " air battle in which ...
.
Trading in corn finished completely in 1983 and, following a refurbishment costing £3.5 million, the building re-opened in September 1993. An independent charity, the Corn Exchange (Newbury) Trust, took over management of the building in June 2000.
See also
* Corn exchanges in England
Corn exchanges are distinct buildings which were originally created as a venue for corn merchants to meet and arrange pricing with farmers for the sale of wheat, barley, and other corn crops. The word "corn" in British English denotes all cereal ...
References
External links
*{{Official website, https://cornexchangenew.com/
Commercial buildings completed in 1862
1862 establishments in England
Music venues in Berkshire
Theatres in Berkshire
Arts centres in England
Grade II listed buildings in Berkshire
Newbury
Buildings and structures in Newbury, Berkshire