Hitchin Town Hall

The first town hall in Hitchin was a building designed by Thomas Bellamy in the Italianate style, which was erected on the south side of Pound Street, now known as Brand Street, in 1840. After population growth in the 19th century, partly associated with the straw plaiting and lavender growing industries, Hitchin was made a local government district in 1873, governed by an elected local board. Such districts were reconstituted as urban districts under the Local Government Act 1894. In this context, the new civic leaders decided that the existing town hall was inadequate and that they would procure a new structure: the site chosen, on the opposite side of Brand Street, was occupied by…