Eight Buildings Listed As Historically Significant
Following a recent public consultation, Minister of Environment and Planning Sylvan Richards today [Oct 31] said that the Department of Planning has added eight more buildings to the list of architecturally and/or historically significant buildings in Bermuda.
The eight include Sessions House, Cabinet Office, Magistrates Court, the Old Town Hall, City Hall, Perot’s Post Office, Par-La-Ville, and the Victoria Bandstand.
Minister Richards said, “These are the first buildings to be listed in the City of Hamilton since the Anglican Cathedral was listed in 1983.
“For anyone who may not know, a ‘listed building’ is a building or structure which is considered to be of ‘special architectural or historic interest’.
“Each property was evaluated by the Historic Buildings Advisory Committee on twelve criteria, including historic association, architectural importance, rarity, and period integrity.
Minister Richards’ full remarks follow below:
Good morning,
Following a month-long public consultation, I am pleased to announce today that the Department of Planning has added eight more buildings to the list of architecturally and/or historically significant buildings in Bermuda.
These eight include Sessions House, Cabinet Office, Magistrates Court, the Old Town Hall, City Hall, Perot’s Post Office, Par-La-Ville, and the Victoria Bandstand.
These are the first buildings to be listed in the City of Hamilton since the Anglican Cathedral was listed in 1983.
For anyone who may not know, a ‘listed building’ is a building or structure which is considered to be of ‘special architectural or historic interest’. Planning permission is required for the demolition or the making of any material alteration to the external appearance of a Listed Building.I am delighted to report that the feedback we received from the owners and occupiers of these buildings as well as the general public during the consultation period was unanimously positive in support of listing the buildings.
Some of the feedback was from people seeking clarification on the listing process and what it means exactly for a building to be listed, which the Department of Planning was more than happy to provide, however, there were no objections.
These buildings are of historic and cultural importance and are symbols of Bermuda, and its government and economic centre Hamilton, and therefore it brings me great pleasure to see them added to the list of architecturally and/or historically significant buildings in Bermuda.
Each property was evaluated by the Historic Buildings Advisory Committee on twelve criteria, including historic association, architectural importance, rarity, and period integrity.
Age is only one criterion and one of the buildings proposed was completed as recently as 1960, this being the iconic City Hall, designed by the celebrated Bermudian architect Wil Onions.
Other buildings, however, are steeped in heritage, such as the Old Town Hall, which is the oldest surviving building in the City. Built in 1784 as the Customs House, it was used for meetings of the Legislature between 1815 and 1817, while from 1875 to 1968 it housed the city’s fire engines.
The Sessions House was completed in 1818 and in the 1890s the signature terracotta decorated clock tower and south colonnade were added for Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee. It has also been the site of some of the most momentous events in our island’s history, such as freeing the enslaved men, women and children from the US Brig Enterprise in 1835.
The Cabinet Office was opened in 1841 as the Public Building, which housed the Customs and Treasury offices on the ground floor and the Governor’s Council and Secretariat on the upper floor. In 1849 it also housed the island’s first public library.
Perot’s Post Office was built circa. 1842 by William Bennett Perot, who designed his now highly sought after one penny stamp.
Magistrates Court was originally built in 1869 to house the Post Office and Telegraph Office and by 1900 it became the General Post Office.
‘Par-la-Ville’ (which means ‘by the town’) was built on a five acre plot adjacent to the Town boundary, between 1801-1816, and the gardens partially survive as Queen Elizabeth II Park. The property was acquired by the Corporation in 1900 and from 1902 it housed the Natural History Museum and from 1917, the Bermuda Library.
Finally, the cast iron designed Bandstand was imported from Scotland to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee of 1887, and in 2008/9 it was carefully restored by the Corporation.
I am pleased that one of the newly listed buildings, Magistrate’s Court, has been recently renovated and will be the new home of the Department of Workforce Development. It is a pleasure to see historic buildings being re-used and renovated for future use – demonstrating that historical buildings can in fact be renovated…and don’t have a finite life.
In closing, I would like to also take this opportunity to inform you that The Department of Planning and the Historic Buildings Advisory Committee has organized a free walking tour of these buildings for World Town Planning Day on Friday 8th November at 12:30pm starting at City Hall.
I encourage as many of you as possible to take advantage of this tour and see our national treasures.
Thank You.
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For those of us who objected to our homes being placed on this same listing, please let us know how we can get them off the listing
So what happened with Alexandrina Hall, designed and built in 1852 by newly freed ex-slaves just 18 years after Emancipation.
Is this ‘historic building now deemed to be historically insignificant? Is it to be knocked down and re-developed while Perot’s Post Office is preserved?
Wow, how where they not already on the list? Has the list not been updated since 1983? Guess they forgot.
Take a photo, knock them down and let’s get on with modernizing. This island is going to be one big museum when the conservationist get done with it.
And just why is there an omission of “Queen of the East”? It was the first home built in Hamilton.
I think it has been taken off the list
It is outside of Hamilton but agreed, it should be on the list. Too late. It has been deliberately neglected so long that now it is beyond restoration.
You are right TD. It was taken off the list in 2007. But why was a house that was built in 1740, generations before the City of Hamilton was even established, ever taken off that list?
Just why have applications from the National Trust to have it re-instated to the list not
been granted.
It is a travesty that the those who own it have not been willing to listen to the pleas of so many in the community to save it from the wrecking ball . Even members of families who lived there previously now residing in the USA have taken an interest in seeing it brought back to its former glory by helping to finance its restoration to avoid another monster
replacing it on the entrance to our city.
Perhaps Queen of the East should be restored and reopened as a a brothel…clean, tested….tax revenue generator. Potentially less pregnancies, restoration of the family unit and job creation.
Imagine the tourists too … Here sits the still functioning Queen of the East….. Queen of the East T-shirts, memorabillia, tours.
Just thinking outside of the box.
One step at a time… Make it a weed cafe first.
I’ll bet you would be happy having the Island looking like Anyplace, USA, with all of the fast food restaurants & chain stores all over.
modernization is killing us. history simply tells you where to go.
Well Done Forward Planning. Congratulation Brian Franklin on this accomplishment……
Wow!! Eight buildings.
Lets break it down.
9 parishes……………….
Quo Fata Furunt……….
Front Street should be saved for something.
A embarkation point?
Terry, These are ADDITIONS to an existing list – not the complete list. I believe you’ll find there numerous buildings listed as historically significent in all 9 parishes
Its the PLP’s fault