The Arch Building (), previously known as Cobh Town Hall and before that as Queenstown Town Hall (), is a municipal building in Casement Square,

Cobh Cobh ( ,), known from 1849 until 1920 as Queenstown, is a seaport town on the south coast of County Cork, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. With a population of 14,148 inhabitants at the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census, Cobh is on the south si ...

County Cork County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...

, Ireland. The building currently accommodates a public library and a

tourist information centre A visitor center or centre (see American and British English spelling differences), visitor information center or tourist information centre is a physical location that provides information to tourists. Types A visitor center may be a Civic ce ...

. It is included in

Cork County Council Cork County Council () is the local authority of County Cork, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001, as amended. The council is responsible for housing and community, roads and transportation, urban pl ...

Record of Protected Structures Conservation in the Republic of Ireland is overseen by a number of statutory and non-governmental agencies, including those with responsibility for Historic preservation, conservation of the built environment and Environmental protection, conservat ...

History

The building was commissioned as a market house by John Smith-Barry (1793–1837), whose seat was at Fota House, and was completed in 1806. It was then remodelled and enlarged in the mid-19th century, as part of a larger scheme commissioned by his son, James Hugh Smith-Barry (1716–1856), to create a new square, known as Scotts Square. The enlarged building was designed by Alexander Deane in the

neoclassical style Neoclassicism, also spelled Neo-classicism, emerged as a Western cultural movement in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiquity. Neoclassici ...

, built in brick with a

cement render Cement render or cement plaster is the application of a mortar mix of sand and cement, (optionally lime) and water to brick, concrete, stone, or mud brick. It is often textured, colored, or painted after application. It is generally used on ...

finish and with grey

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

dressings, and was officially opened on 27 May 1852. The design involved a symmetrical main frontage of thirteen bays facing onto the new square. The central section of three bays, which was slightly projected forward and faced in grey limestone on the ground floor, featured a carriageway arch flanked by two smaller pedestrian arches, all with

voussoir A voussoir ( UK: ; US: ) is a wedge-shaped element, typically a stone, which is used in building an arch or vault.“Voussoir, N., Pronunciation.” Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, June 2024, https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/7553486115. Acces ...

s and keystones. On the first floor, there was a central

sash window A sash window or hung sash window is made of one or more movable panels, or "sashes". The individual sashes are traditionally paned windows, but can now contain an individual sheet (or sheets, in the case of double glazing) of glass. History ...

with a segmental headed

pediment Pediments are a form of gable in classical architecture, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the cornice (an elaborated lintel), or entablature if supported by columns.Summerson, 130 In an ...

, flanked by two sash windows with triangular pediments, all with

window sill A windowsill (also written window sill or window-sill, and less frequently in British English, cill) is the horizontal structure or surface at the bottom of a window. Window sills serve to structurally support and hold the window in place. The ...

s. The central section was surmounted by a

modillion A modillion is an ornate bracket, more horizontal in shape and less imposing than a corbel. They are often seen underneath a Cornice (architecture), cornice which helps to support them. Modillions are more elaborate than dentils (literally transl ...

cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative Moulding (decorative), moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, ar ...

and by a pediment with a

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

in the tympanum. The wings of five bays each were fenestrated by round headed windows with

architrave In classical architecture, an architrave (; , also called an epistyle; ) is the lintel or beam, typically made of wood or stone, that rests on the capitals of columns. The term can also apply to all sides, including the vertical members, ...

s on the ground floor, and by sash windows with architraves on the first floor, and were surmounted by modillioned cornices. After the Cunard passenger liner was sunk by a German

U-boat U-boats are Submarine#Military, naval submarines operated by Germany, including during the World War I, First and Second World Wars. The term is an Anglicization#Loanwords, anglicized form of the German word , a shortening of (), though the G ...

off the

Old Head of Kinsale The Old Head of Kinsale () is a headland near Kinsale, County Cork, Ireland. A castle has been on the headland since at least the 3rd century, with the current iteration built in 1223. An early lighthouse was established here in the 17th centur ...

, while en route from the US to

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

on 7 May 1915, local fishermen collected the bodies of the victims from the beach and laid them out in the assembly hall. Scotts Square was renamed Casement Square in memory of the Irish nationalist,

Roger Casement Roger David Casement (; 1 September 1864 – 3 August 1916), known as Sir Roger Casement, CMG, between 1911 and 1916, was a diplomat and Irish nationalist executed by the United Kingdom for treason during World War I. He worked for the Britis ...

, when Queenstown was renamed Cobh in 1920. A statue, intended to commemorate the victims of the Lusitania disaster, was sculpted by

Jerome Connor Jerome Connor (23 February 1874 in Coumduff, Annascaul, County Kerry – 21 August 1943 in Dublin) was an Irish sculptor. Life In 1888, he emigrated to Holyoke, Massachusetts. His father was a stonemason, which led to Connor's jobs in New York ...

in the form of an Angel of Peace standing above two fishermen and was unveiled in front of the building in Casement Square in 1968. In 1976, the building was converted for use as a public library at a cost of £75,000. The building also became the home of the local

, and the

District Court District courts are a category of courts which exists in several nations, some call them "small case court" usually as the lowest level of the hierarchy. These courts generally work under a higher court which exercises control over the lower co ...

also occupied part of the building until it closed in 2010. A significant programme of repair works, to restore the main frontage of the building, was undertaken in 2012.

References

{{City and town halls in Ireland, state=collapsed Government buildings completed in 1806 City and town halls in the Republic of Ireland Buildings and structures in Cobh