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The former Manchester Law Library at 14 Kennedy Street,
Designed by Thomas Hartas, the library was built by William Holt between 1884 and 1885 to provide a meeting place, and reading room, for the Manchester Law Society. The building has a fine Venetian Gothic façade, "three bays, each divided into three again with richly traceried and strongly moulded frames to the openings". Internally, a lending library is located on the ground floor, "now with twentieth century furnishings. On the first floor, a reading room "with most of the (slightly rearranged) attractive, original fittings." These include the central oak table, three fireplaces, and tall bookcases, some set at right angles to the walls to maximise the available storage space. The "stained glass is a noteworthy feature (including) three
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
, England, is a Grade II* listed building in the Venetian Gothic
Venetian Gothic is the particular form of Italian Gothic architecture typical of Venice, originating in local building requirements, with some influence from Byzantine architecture, and some from Islamic architecture, reflecting Venice's trading ...
style. The building is notable as having housed the oldest provincial law library in England. Its architect, Thomas Hartas, is little known, and the former law library appears to be his only documented building. In 2015, the Manchester Incorporated Law Library Society sold the premises, and moved to new offices on Booth Street.
History and description
Designed by Thomas Hartas, the library was built by William Holt between 1884 and 1885 to provide a meeting place, and reading room, for the Manchester Law Society. The building has a fine Venetian Gothic façade, "three bays, each divided into three again with richly traceried and strongly moulded frames to the openings". Internally, a lending library is located on the ground floor, "now with twentieth century furnishings. On the first floor, a reading room "with most of the (slightly rearranged) attractive, original fittings." These include the central oak table, three fireplaces, and tall bookcases, some set at right angles to the walls to maximise the available storage space. The "stained glass is a noteworthy feature (including) three roundel
A roundel is a circular disc used as a symbol. The term is used in heraldry, but also commonly used to refer to a type of national insignia used on military aircraft, generally circular in shape and usually comprising concentric rings of differ ...
s containing the images of bewigged judges". Offices are above this. "The building is noteworthy by virtue of having been built for the purposes of a law library and, London and the old universities aside, it is believed to have performed this function for a period longer than any other provincial law library".
Hartas is an elusive architect and the library appears to be his only documented building. He has no entry in the RIBA ''Directory of British Architects 1834–1914'' an exhaustive survey of practising architects of the Victorian era
In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...
. The library is a Grade II* listed building.
In 2015, the building was put up for sale. The law library relocated to new premises on Booth Street where it remains a private library open only to subscribing members of the legal profession.
See also
*Grade II* listed buildings in Greater Manchester
There are 236 Grade II* listed buildings in Greater Manchester, England. In the United Kingdom, the term listed building refers to a building or other structure officially designated as being of special architectural, historical or cultural ...
*Listed buildings in Manchester-M2
Manchester is a city in Northwest England. The M2 postcode area of the city includes part of the city centre, including the Central Retail District. The postcode area contains 143 listed buildings that are recorded in the National Heritag ...
Notes
References
* * * *External links
* {{Authority control Grade II* listed buildings in Manchester Libraries in Manchester Library buildings completed in 1885 Law libraries in the United Kingdom Gothic Revival architecture in Greater Manchester Venetian Gothic architecture in the United Kingdom