Derry's second Town Hall 1692-1859 - Our Space 94
To replace the original 1616 Town Hall, badly damaged in the 1689 siege, the Corporation built a new Town Hall in the same place - the centre of The Diamond.
It was designed by engineer Captain Francis Neville. A former defender of the city during the siege, he had been sent to negotiate with the besieging jacobite army, but had been captured and taken away.
After the siege was lifted, Neville had made his way back to the city and was subsequently made a voting freeman.
King William and Queen Mary gave £1,500 towards the building cost. The Grand Jury of the City and County gave £300.
On 15 April 1692 the first stone was laid by Church of Ireland Bishop King and Alderman Lecky.
The previous building had had a military look, with cannons on its roof. The new town hall was elegant and open in mannerist style. It housed the town’s assembly rooms and the Corporation used it until 1823-26 when it was almost completely rebuilt at a cost of £5,500.
It was described in an 1853 tour guide as containing “a very fine assembly room 75 ft by 36 ft, a commercial room, news room, etc, and is admitted to be one of the most elegant and convenient town-halls in the kingdom”.
It served for 167 years, longer so far than any of Derry’s other three town halls. But in 1859 it was, in turn, replaced on the same Diamond site by Derry’s third Town Hall.