| Whitworth Building | |
|---|---|
 Whitworth Building from the outside, showing a large stained glass window on its south side which is a prominent feature of the Whitworth Hall | |
| General information | |
| Architectural style | Neogothic |
| Location | Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL |
| Coordinates | 53°27′55.8″N2°14′0.6″W / 53.465500°N 2.233500°W /53.465500; -2.233500 |
| Completed | c.1895–1902[1] |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Paul Waterhouse[1] |
| Designations | |
Listed Building – Grade II* | |
| Official name | Victoria University of Manchester including Christie Library, Whitworth Hall |
| Designated | 18 December 1963 |
| Reference no. | 1271428 |
TheWhitworth Building is agrade II* listed building onOxford Road and Burlington Street inChorlton-on-Medlock, Manchester, England. It has been listed since 18 December 1963[2][3] and is part of theUniversity of Manchester. It lies at the south-east range of the oldquadrangle of the University, with theManchester Museum adjoined to the north, and the former Christie Library connected to the west.[4][5]
The building was constructed c. 1895–1902, in the style of theGothic Revival, and was designed byPaul Waterhouse.[1] The official opening ceremony took place on 12 March 1902, when the Prince and Princess of Wales (laterKing George V andQueen Mary) were present.[6] The Whitworth Building is named after theMancunian industrialistJoseph Whitworth, who bequeathed much of his fortune to fund public developments in Manchester. Thelegatees, among whom wasRichard Copley Christie, funded the construction of the building and the adjoining Christie Library (the library was completed first and opened in 1898).
The building is constructed ofsandstone, with red tiled roofs infish scale bands, and is connected to theManchester Museum to the north via a 2-storey entrance archway. The building has two unequal storeys, consisting of eight bays separated bybuttresses. It has a largeperpendicular style stained glass window facing south. Two 3-stage corner towers flank the window, with octagonalbelfries and short spires.[1]
The building's upper floor comprises the Whitworth Hall, which can hold up to 675 people for meetings, up to 300 people for banquets or up to 200 for dinner dances.[7][8][9] The interior of the hall is also Gothic in construction and decoration, in keeping with the exterior. It has ahammerbeam roof (unusually the lower timbers spring from freestanding columns), adais and alarge organ occupy the northernmost part of the hall, and raised wooden galleries project from both northern and southern walls. The organ was donated byEnriqueta Rylands in 1902.[10]The hall is licensed forcivil weddings,[9] and is used for allgraduation ceremonies at the University.[11] The lower floor of the building is of a much less lofty construction, and is separated into a number of meeting rooms, consisting of five boardrooms and a council chamber.[9]
Media related toWhitworth Hall at Wikimedia Commons
Buildings and structures inManchester, England | ||
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