County hall
A county hall or shire hall is a common name given to a building that houses the seat of local government for a county.
The location of the county hall has usually denoted the county town.
In the case of Surrey, England, when county boundaries changed the county hall remained in Kingston upon Thames. County halls usually contain a council chamber, committee rooms and offices.
List of county and shire halls
United Kingdom
England
County halls in England, with the ceremonial county they served, include:| Image | Name | Town or city | County | Years built | Style | Years in use | Reference |
| Avon House | Bristol | Avon | 1969–1972 | International style | 1974–1996: Avon County Council 1996–1999: Bristol City Council 1999–2024: private use as a hotel | ||
| County Hall | Bedford | Bedfordshire | 1965–1969 | Brutalist style | 1970–2009: Bedfordshire County Council 2009–present: Bedford Borough Council | ||
| Shire Hall | Reading | Berkshire | 1981 | Brutalist style | 1981–1998: Berkshire County Council 2000–2017: Foster Wheeler AG 2017–present: John Wood Group plc | ||
| City Hall | Bristol | Bristol | 1938–1952 | Neo-Georgian style | 1956–present: Bristol City Council | ||
| County Hall | Aylesbury | Buckinghamshire | 1964–1966 | Brutalist style | 1966–2020: Buckinghamshire County Council 2020–present Buckinghamshire Council | ||
| Shire Hall | Cambridge | Cambridgeshire | 1932 | Neo-Georgian style | 1932–2020: Cambridgeshire County Council 2020–present: hotel and office development | ||
| New Shire Hall | Alconbury Weald | Cambridgeshire | 2019–2020 | Modern style | 2020–present: Cambridgeshire County Council | ||
| County Hall | Chester | Cheshire | 1938–1957 | Neo-Georgian style | 1957–2009: Cheshire County Council 2009–present: University of Chester | ||
| Municipal Buildings | Middlesbrough | Cleveland | 1883–1889 | French Gothic Style | 1889–1968: Middlesbrough Borough Council 1968–1974: Teesside County Borough Council 1974–1996: Cleveland County Council 1966–present: Middlesbrough Council | ||
| Lys Kernow | Truro | Cornwall | 1966 | Brutalist style | 1966–2009: Cornwall County Council 2009–present: Cornwall Council | ||
| Cumbria House | Carlisle | Cumberland / Cumbria | 2016 | Modern style | 2016–2023: Cumbria County Council 2023–present: Cumberland Council | ||
| County Hall | Matlock | Derbyshire | 1867 | Victorian neo-gothic | 1867–1955: Smedley's Hydropathic Hospital 1955–present: Derbyshire County Council | ||
| County Hall | Exeter | Devon | 1958–1964 | Neo-classical style | 1964–present: Devon County Council | ||
| County Hall | Dorchester | Dorset | 1938–1955 | Art Deco style | 1955–2019: Dorset County Council 2019–present: Dorset Council | ||
| County Hall | Durham | County Durham | 1960–1963 | Brutalist style | 1963–present: Durham County Council | ||
| County Hall | Lewes | East Sussex | 1968 | Modern style | 1968–present: East Sussex County Council Also used by Lewes District Council | ||
| County Hall | Beverley | East Riding of Yorkshire | 1881 | Flemish Renaissance style | 1889–1974: East Riding County Council 1974–1996: Humberside County Council 1996–present: East Riding of Yorkshire Council | ||
| County Hall | Chelmsford | Essex | 1909 | Neo-classical style | 1909–present: Essex County Council | ||
| Shire Hall | Gloucester | Gloucestershire | 1816 | Neo-classical style | 1816–present: Gloucestershire County Council | ||
| City Hall | London | Greater London | 2012 | Modern style | 2012–present: Greater London Authority | ||
| County Hall | Manchester | Greater Manchester | 1973 | Modern style | 1974–1986: Greater Manchester County Council 1986–present: Commercial offices | ||
| Castle Hill | Winchester | Hampshire | 1833 | Elizabethan style | 1889–present: Hampshire County Council | ||
| Shirehall | Hereford | Herefordshire | 1817 | Neo-classical style | 1889–1974: Herefordshire County Council 1998–present: Herefordshire Council | ||
| County Hall | Hertford | Hertfordshire | 1939 | Neo-Georgian style with Scandinavian elements | 1939–present: Hertfordshire County Council | ||
| County Hall | Boston | Holland | 1927 | Gothic Revival style | 1927–1974: Holland County Council 1974–present:Public library | ||
| Walden House | Huntingdon | Huntingdonshire | 1674 | Jacobean style | 1889–1965: Huntingdonshire County Council 1965–1974: Huntingdon and Peterborough County Council 1974–present: Municipal offices and then private apartments | ||
| County Hall | March | Isle of Ely | 1909 | Edwardian style | 1909–1965: Isle of Ely County Council 1974–present: Fenland District Council | ||
| County Hall | Newport | Isle of Wight | 1938 | Neo-Georgian style | 1938–present: Isle of Wight County Council | ||
| County Hall | Maidstone | Kent | 1824 | Greek Revival style | 1889–present: Kent County Council | ||
| County Offices | Sleaford | Kesteven | 1856 | Italianate style | 1925–1974: Kesteven County Council 1974–present: North Kesteven District Council | ||
| County Hall | Preston | Lancashire | 1882 | Queen Anne revival style | 1889–present: Lancashire County Council | ||
| County Hall | Glenfield | Leicestershire | 1967 | Brutalist style | 1967–present: Leicestershire County Council | ||
| County Offices | Lincoln | Lindsey / Lincolnshire | 1932 | Neo-Georgian style | 1932–1974: Lindsey County Council 1974–present: Lincolnshire County Council | ||
| The Guildhall | Westminster | Middlesex | 1913 | Neo-Gothic style | 1913–1965: Middlesex County Council 1965–2009: Used as a court 2009–present: Supreme Court of the United Kingdom | ||
| Metropolitan House | Liverpool | Merseyside | 1974 | Modern style | 1974–1986: Merseyside County Council 1986–present: Commercial offices | ||
| County Hall | Norwich | Norfolk | 1968 | Modern style | 1968–present: Norfolk County Council | ||
| County Hall | Northampton | Northamptonshire | 1845 | Neo-classical style | 1899–2021: Northamptonshire County Council 2021–present: Tourist Information Centre | ||
| County Hall | Morpeth | Northumberland | 1981 | Modern style | 1981–present: Northumberland County Council | ||
| County Hall | Northallerton | North Yorkshire | 1906 | Edwardian Baroque style | 1906–1974: North Riding County Council 1974–present: North Yorkshire County Council | ||
| County Hall | Nottingham | Nottinghamshire | 1954 | Modern style | 1954–present: Nottinghamshire County Council | ||
| County Hall | Oxford | Oxfordshire | 1841 | Gothic Revival style | 1899–present: Oxfordshire County Council | ||
| Catmose House | Oakham | Rutland | 1781 | Neo-classical style | 1899–1974: Rutland County Council 1997–present: Rutland County Council | ||
| Shirehall | Shrewsbury | Shropshire | 1966 | Modern style | 1966–present: Shropshire County Council | ||
| County Hall | Taunton | Somerset | 1935 | Neo-Georgian style | 1935–present: Somerset County Council | ||
| County Hall | Barnsley | South Yorkshire | 1960 | Brutalist style | 1974–1986: South Yorkshire County Council 1974–2015: Commercial offices | ||
| County Buildings | Stafford | Staffordshire | 1895 | Baroque revival style | 1899–present: Staffordshire County Council | ||
| Endeavour House | Ipswich | Suffolk | 2003 | Modern style | 2003–present: Suffolk County Council | ||
| Woodhatch Place | Reigate | Surrey | 1999 | Modern style | 2020–present: Surrey County Council | ||
| Sandyford House | Newcastle upon Tyne | Tyne and Wear | 1974 | Brutalist style | 1974–1986: Tyne and Wear County Council 1986–present: Commercial offices | ||
| Shire Hall | Warwick | Warwickshire | 1758 | Neo-classical style | 1899–present: Warwickshire County Council | ||
| County Hall | Birmingham | West Midlands | 1970 | Brutalist style | 1974–1986: West Midlands County Council 1986–present: Commercial offices | ||
| County Hall | Kendal | Westmorland | 1939 | Neo-Georgian style | 1939–1974: Westmorland County Council 1974–2024: Municipal offices | ||
| County Hall | Chichester | West Sussex | 1933 | Neo-Georgian style | 1933–present: West Sussex County Council | ||
| County Hall | Wakefield | West Yorkshire | 1898 | Gothic Revival style | 1898–1974: West Riding County Council 1974–1986: West Yorkshire County Council 1986–present: Wakefield Metropolitan District Council | ||
| County Hall | Trowbridge | Wiltshire | 1940 | Neo-Georgian style | 1940–present: Wiltshire County Council | ||
| County Hall | Worcester | Worcestershire | 1978 | Brutalist style | 1978–1998: Hereford and Worcester County Council 1998–present: Worcestershire County Council |