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Sankey Street, WARRINGTON, WA1 1NN

The gates to the left of the image mark the entrance to Warrington Town Hall.

Warrington Town Hall was built in 1750, and is a Grade I Listed Building. The ornamental gates, which are Grade II listed, were added in 1895.

The gates were made in cast iron by the Coalbrookdale Company at Ironbridge in the early 1860's. They were offered as a gift to Warrington Borough Council by Frederick Monks, a member of the council, in 1893. They were formally opened on 28 June 1895. On each side of the gates is an ornate screen which contains four columns, on top of which is a statue of Nike, the goddess of victory. In the centre of the archway over the gate are the arms of Warrington Borough Council.

When the Corporation purchased Bank Hall and its gardens they were surrounded by a high wall. This meant that Town Hall and the newly created public park could not be seen from Sankey Street until the 1890s when the wall was replaced by railings including these magnificent gates. The cast iron gates were made at Ironbridge by the Coalbrookdale Company for showing at the International Exhibition in London in 1862 and are said to be amongst the finest in England. It is believed that they were originally commissioned as a gift for Queen Victoria, to be used at Sandringham. She declined them and they were returned to Coalbrookdale where they stayed from 1863 to 1893 until Mr Frederick Monks, a member of the council, saw them on one of his many visits to Ironbridge as a director of the Monks Hall Foundry. He donated them to the council and, after being formally opened on Walking Day on 28 June 1895, they have graced the Sankey Street frontage to the town hall and Bank Park ever since (http://www.warrington.gov.uk/info/200798/local_history_and_heritage/51/history_of_the_town_hall_and_golden_gates/4 The Famous Golden Gates, Warrington Borough Council). On each side of the gates, there is an ornate screen containing four columns. On top of each column is a statue of Nike, the goddess of victory. In the centre of the archway over the gate are the arms of Warrington Borough Council. The gates, which are 16.5 metres wide and measure 7.6 metres to the top of the central arch, are listed Grade II* along with the piers and associated lamps (http://list.english-heritage.org.uk/resultsingle.aspx?uid=1261277 National Heritage List for England). The rest of the railings and a fine ornamental fountain, erected immediately behind the gates in 1899, were removed in 1942 to provide iron to help the war effort. Fortunately, the same fate did not befall these gates.

For an alternative view, please see Image

The gates were commissioned by one of the livery companies of London as a present for Queen Victoria in 1862 to be installed at Sandringham. The gift was turned down and returned to the foundry in Ironbridge. They eventually ended up as a gift to Warrington in 1895.

A facade decorated with an image of the famous Golden Gates sits in their place while the actual gates are away for restoration. The Golden Gates restoration project will see the Grade II* listed gates restored to their former glory. It is believed the gates were initially intended as a gift for Queen Victoria, before being purchased for Warrington by local councillor Frederick Monks. The previous refurbishment – carried out in 1978/9 – has lasted for nearly 40 years. However the urban location and proximity to a marine climate, means the gates are now showing signs of deterioration. Following a series of surveys, they were found to be in need of attention, with issues including corrosion and cracking of the ironwork, loss of decorative detail, defects to supporting brickwork, peeling paint and gilding. Having identified the need for repairs to the gates, Warrington Borough Council began work with international engineering, design and consultancy company, Ramboll, to identify the right conservators to carry out such a specialist piece of work.

Bank Hall was originally built in 1750 for Thomas Patten and his family. At the time, it was set in open fields which extended down to the River Mersey. It remained with the Patten family until 1872, when the town council bought the hall, along with the 13-acre grounds surrounding it. The building has been the Warrington Town Hall ever since. The grounds were opened to the public in 1873, becoming the town's first public park, now known as Bank Park. At that time, the high perimeter wall, which had been added by the family to provide privacy as the population of Warrington began to grow, meant that Town Hall and the newly created public park could not be seen from Sankey Street. A situation which continued until the 1890s when the wall was replaced by railings including these magnificent gates (Warrington’s famous “Golden Gates”). The cast iron gates were made at Ironbridge by the Coalbrookdale Company for showing at the International Exhibition in London in 1862 and are said to be amongst the finest in England. It is believed that they were originally commissioned as a gift for Queen Victoria, to be used at Sandringham. She declined them and they were returned to Coalbrookdale where they stayed from 1863 to 1893 until Mr Frederick Monks, a member of the council, saw them on one of his many visits to Ironbridge as a director of the Monks Hall Foundry. He donated them to the council and, after being formally opened on Walking Day on 28 June 1895, they have graced the Sankey Street frontage to the town hall and Bank Park ever since (http://www.warrington.gov.uk/info/200798/local_history_and_heritage/51/history_of_the_town_hall_and_golden_gates/4 The Famous Golden Gates, Warrington Borough Council). On each side of the gates, there is an ornate screen containing four columns is. On top of each column is a statue of Nike, the goddess of victory. In the centre of the archway over the gate are the arms of Warrington Borough Council. The Town Hall is a Grade I listed building (http://list.english-heritage.org.uk/resultsingle.aspx?uid=1329725 The National Heritage List for England). The gates, which are 16.5 metres wide and measure 7.6 metres to the top of the central arch, are listed Grade II* along with the piers and associated lamps (http://list.english-heritage.org.uk/resultsingle.aspx?uid=1261277 National Heritage List for England). The rest of the railings and a fine ornamental fountain, erected immediately behind the gates in 1899, were removed in 1942 to provide iron to help the war effort. Fortunately, the same fate did not befall the gates. See also Image] and Image