Fullscreen image

1st August 1906

Belfast City Hall opened

In the 1st August 1906 Belfast City Hall opened. It replaced the earlier town hall on Victoria Street, which was not considered grand enough to represent Belfast's growing importance.

The building cost £360,000, a huge amount for the time and twice as much as was originally estimated. The foundation stone alone cost £500.

In the same year a report from the Vice Regal Commission found that the death rate from typhoid in Belfast was the highest in the UK, due to the poor sanitary state of much of Belfast, a "result of inefficient sanitary administration extending over many years".

Welfare, Industry
Ornate interior of Belfast City Hall. The stained-glass window contains the Belfast coat of arms.
Digital Key