2 Haymarket

2 Haymarket
2 Haymarket, seen from the west
General information
Status	Completed
Type	Former post office
Architectural style	Classical revival
Classification
Listed Building – Grade II
Designated	12 June 1973
Reference no.	1270961
Town or city	Sheffield
Country	United Kingdom
Completed	1871
Opened	1872

2 Haymarket is a listed building in Sheffield City Centre in England.

The building was constructed in 1871 to serve as Sheffield's head post office.^[1] It was originally intended also to house the local branch of the Inland Revenue, but the space was almost immediately found to be inadequate, and within a couple of months of its opening in 1872, the Revenue moved to offices on Norfolk Street.^[2]

The building has two stories and an attic and is in the classical revival style, adopting a form which was already old-fashioned at the time it was built.^[1] In 1879, it was described as "a fairly handsome Doric structure, but inadequate to the requirements of the rapidly increasing postal and telegraphic business of so large a town".^[2] A further section at the rear of the building, facing Commercial Street, was constructed at the same time and in the same style, but is of a single storey, with a basement below.^[1]

In 1910, a new head post office for the city was constructed on Fitzalan Square.^[3] The building was purchased by the Sheffield Stock Exchange, which opened its new site with a grand ceremony in 1911.^[4] The stock exchange operated until 1967, when the creation of British Steel Corporation dramatically reduced its business.^[1][5]

The building was restored in the 1970s, and the interior was completely reworked to serve as a branch of the Yorkshire Bank,^[6] which it remained until September 2014. The building is Grade II listed.^[7]

As of July 2017, the building remains unoccupied following Yorkshire Bank's vacation of the site. There are currently plans for the refurbishment of 2 Haymarket and the adjacent building at 5-7 Commercial Street, which would include the addition of a second floor on the Commercial Street building and the creation of 11 flats across both buildings.^[8]

References

1. Ruth Harman and John Minnis, Pevsner Architectural Guides: Sheffield, p.149
2. Pawson and Brailsford, The Illustrated Guide to Sheffield and District (1879 edition), p.111
3. Clyde Binfield, The History of the City of Sheffield, 1843–1993, p.42
4. W. A. Thomas, The Provincial Stock Exchanges, pp.101–102
5. W. A. Thomas, The Provincial Stock Exchanges, p.246
6. John Edward Vickers, A Popular History of Sheffield, pp.199–200
7. Historic England. "Yorkshire Bank and Railing (1270961)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
8. "16/00727/LBC | Demolition of roof-top gangway extension, erection of roof-top extension over existing rear extension and alterations to existing rear extension and upper floors of main building to form 11 flats | 2 Haymarket And 5-7 Commercial Street Sheffield S1 1PF". planningapps.sheffield.gov.uk. Sheffield City Council. Retrieved 30 June 2021.

53.383264°N 1.464018°W / 53.383264; -1.464018