Sandbach Literary Institute

Sandbach Literary Institute
Sandbach Literary Institute
Location	Hightown, Sandbach
Coordinates	53.1446°N 2.3647°W / 53.1446; -2.3647
Built	1857
Architect	Sir George Gilbert Scott
Architectural style(s)	Gothic Revival style
Listed Building – Grade II
Official name	The Literary Institute
Designated	3 June 1976
Reference no.	1130351
Shown in Cheshire

The Sandbach Literary Institute, also known as Sandbach Literary Institution, is a commercial building in Hightown in Sandbach, Cheshire, England. The structure, which is currently used as a community events venue, is a Grade II listed building.^[1]

History

The building was commissioned with the objective of "improving the conditions of life for the inhabitants" and was financed by public subscription.^[2] It was designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott in the Gothic Revival style, built by Samuel Faram of Wheelock in red brick with blue brick decoration at a cost of £2,700 and was completed in 1857.^[3][4][5] It was opened with a concert performed by amateur musicians.^[6]

The design involved an asymmetrical main frontage of six bays facing onto Hightown. The left-hand bay was formed by a two-stage octagonal tower with an arched doorway in the first stage and a bipartite window in the second stage, all surmounted by a hipped roof. The central block of three bays, which was slightly projected forward, was fenestrated by tripartite cusped windows within recessed arches on the ground floor and by bipartite cusped windows reaching up into the gables on the first floor. The right-hand section of two bays contained another arched doorway and was fenestrated by lancet windows on both floors. Internally, the principal rooms were a corn exchange and some reading rooms on the ground floor and a "long room" which was used for public events on the first floor.^[7]

The building was also used for public events: speakers included the campaigner for women's suffrage, Elizabeth Wolstenholme and her partner, Benjamin Elmy, in November 1872.^[8] The use of the building as a corn exchange declined significantly in the wake of the Great Depression of British Agriculture in the late 19th century.^[9] After the First World War a roll of honour was mounted on a wall in the building to commemorate the lives of local service personnel who had died during the war.^[10][11]

In 2005, the building became the offices and meeting place of Sandbach Town Council,^[12][13] but, in October 2020, the council decided to move its meetings to Sandbach Town Hall.^[14][15]

See also

• Corn exchanges in England
• Listed buildings in Sandbach

References

1. Historic England. "The Literary Institute (1130351)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
2. "The Literary Institution, Sandbach". Charity Commission. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
3. Hartwell, Clare; Hyde, Matthew; Hubbard, Edward; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2011) [1971]. Cheshire. The Buildings of England. Yale University Press. p. 331. ISBN 978-0-300-17043-6.
4. "Sandbach Character Assessment Document" (PDF). Sandbach Town Council. p. 35. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
5. "Sandbach Literary Institute opens". Sandbach.info. Archived from the original on 29 November 2022.
6. Provincial News. Vol. 14. The Builder. 12 February 1859. p. 118.
7. The National Encyclopaedia. Vol. 4. William Mackenzie. 1879. p. 471.
8. Crawford, Elizabeth (2013). The Women's Suffrage Movement in Britain and Ireland A Regional Survey. Taylor & Francis. p. 21. ISBN 978-1136010620.
9. Fletcher, T. W. (1973). 'The Great Depression of English Agriculture 1873-1896' in British Agriculture 1875-1914. London: Methuen. p. 31. ISBN 978-1136581182.
10. "Roll of Honour, Sandbach Literary Institute". Carl's Cam. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
11. "Sandbach Literary Institute World War I Roll of Honour". Imperial War Museum. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
12. "Fears for the future Sandbach's historic Literary Institute". Crewe Chronicle. 11 November 2009. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
13. "Investment needed to protect iconic building". Crewe Chronicle. 4 March 2016. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
14. "Town council to leave the Sandbach Literary Institute due to 'detrimental' cost". Sandbach Nub News. 20 October 2020. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
15. "Council Meetings". Sandbach Town Council. Retrieved 7 August 2023.