Historian sheds light on Lyme Regis town halls, revealing locations and dispelling myths about the current building.
The second town hall had a jail attached. The jail was there since the early 1500s. In 1834, someone described the “old building” near Gun Cliff. By 1861, they called it a “dingy cottage.” It wasn’t worth much.
Lacey says pre-1800s records mention “Town Hall.” These records go back to 1555. Lyme got permission to build a guildhall in 1284. Historian Cyril Wanklyn called it “town hall.” Wanklyn’s 1927 map calls it the same thing.
The current Guildhall has a grand Jubilee Tower. Its name matches its appearance. The blue plaque is wrong, Lacey says. It says the building is from Elizabethan times. The plaque also mentions Sir George Somers misleadingly. The plaque needs fixing.
The mayor’s old accounts are useful. They revealed some interesting facts. In 1555, the first town hall was at Millhill. It was near the mill’s pit. This location puts it near Gosling Bridge in Millgreen.
The 1612 records show the Millhill building needed work. They spent £30 fixing it. That equals about £4,000 now. Gosling Bridge was on “The King’s Highway.” This road was the main route in and out. A legislative building was right for that spot.
During the 1644 siege, Gaiche’s Fort was close. The Civil War saw it built near the Town Hall. The fort and Millhill got hit by Royalist fire. The battery was above Gosling Bridge.
Many buildings burned or got damaged. The Town Hall may have been damaged too. Repairs happened from 1647 to 1676. The 1647-1663 accounts mention work. It looks like work on the second Town Hall.
This cost roughly £2,000 today. Records don’t say when the second Town Hall got built. The records aren’t complete. Some years are missing. A photo from 1860 shows a plain, shabby structure.
It looked more like a warehouse. Lacey says the plaque must mention Monmouth’s Rebellion. It happened outside the 17th-century Town Hall in 1685.