Beverley Guildhall

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Name	Beverley Guildhall
Description	The Guildhall contains timbers dating back to the 14th or 15th centuries, when it was a private house. In 1500 the Governors of Beverley purchased the building for use as a Guildhall - a meeting place for the town`s leading citizens, or burgesses, in which civic business was conducted. The building has been substantiallly remodelled since that period. In 1762, local builder William Middleton added a magnificent courtroom decorated with a stucco ceiling created by the Swiss-Italian stuccoist Guiseppe Cortese. An imposing facade modelled on a Greek temple was added around 1830. Much of the original furniture purchased by the town Corporation over the years can still be seen, including a wonderful unique Mayoral "bink" (local dialect for "bench"). The Guildhall also contains the Beverley Community Museum with displays about Beverley`s history. The current temporary display entitled "Markets and Fairs" covers the history of these institutions in the town since the Middle Ages, and will run until April 2008. Objects and images donated by the public are displayed in a seperate room, along with a computer archive of over 1000 historic photographs of Beverley. Paintings by Fred Elwell (Royal Academician), depicting town life and local characters from the first half of the twentieth century, are displayed throughout the building. Much of the work on displaying and researching collections is undertaken by volunteers - please contact the curator is you are interested in volunteering. See the link for a leaflet about the history of the building.
Address	The Guildhall
	Register Square
	Beverley
	East Riding of Yorkshire
	HU17 9BE
Telephone	01482 392776
Fax	01482 392779
Email	stefan.ramsden@eastriding.gov.uk
Admission Information	Free admission