Talgarth Town Hall

PWMP logobutton_lang_welshTalgarth Town Hall

This building was erected as a combined town hall and “market house”. It’s home to Talgarth Town Council.

The foundation stone was laid in July 1877 by WF Roche of Tregunter Park, who had donated funds for the building. One of the hall’s earliest public events, in October 1878, was a talk on the temperance movement (which campaigned to reduce the public’s alcohol consumption). Theatrical shows were staged at the hall, which was later also licensed to show films.

An annual St David’s Day festival was held at the town hall in the early 20th century. Organised by students at Trefeca theological college, the event included music, speeches and dramatic performances.

On 6 August 1914, two days after Britain had declared war on Germany, a public meeting was held at the town hall to encourage local men to enlist in the armed forces. Before the event, territorial soldiers (army reservists) paraded through Talgarth’s streets behind their bugle band. Patriotic speeches at the meeting were followed by a rush of c.20 men to hand in their names and addresses.

By 1916 the focus of events in the hall had changed to helping the wounded. Local musicians staged a fundraising concert here in November 1916. The event was so successful that it was repeated two days later.

The hall was draped with flags in February 1918 for a concert and ball to raise money for Alun Havard, who had lost both legs while serving with the Royal Field Artillery on the Western Front. The dancing continued until 3am.

A brass plaque listing the war dead was erected in the town hall soon after the conflict but was later buried under the town’s war memorial. It was exhumed in the 1980s. In 2016 Talgarth and District Historical Society renovated it and returned it, in its original wooden frame, to the town hall.

Postcode: LD3 0BW    View Location Map

Website of Talgarth Town Council

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