Bedford Corn Exchange made a Grade II listed building
The status of the Harper Suite has also been updated.
Bedford Corn Exchange has been listed at Grade II by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) on the advice of Historic England.
As part of the Bedford High Street Heritage Action Zone (HSHAZ), delivered by Historic England and Bedford Borough Council, Historic England is reviewing and researching the historic buildings within the HSHAZ area.
More detailed information has also been added to the list entry for the Harpur Suite, built in the mid-19th century as an Assembly Rooms.
Eilíse McGuane, Historic England Listing Adviser said: “These remarkable Victorian public buildings were created as social destinations for people to experience education, leisure and entertainment."
"The impressive architecture and stunning interiors show how important they were to the people of Bedford.
"Through the work of the High Street Heritage Action Zone, local people will be able to enjoy and appreciate the Corn Exchange and the Harpur Suite with new insight into their past lives and importance to Bedford.
"We’d love for people to add their own photos, memories and information onto the list entries for these beautiful buildings.”
Cllr Henry Vann, Portfolio Holder for Town Centres and Planning at Bedford Borough Council, said: “The Corn Exchange is a significant and important building that played a central role during wartime history both globally and locally - with musicians from around the world performing here, and the Harpur Suite is a similarly significant architectural landmark at the heart of our Borough."
"It is only right that these buildings are recognised through this listing. These buildings, much like many others located in our High Street Heritage Action Zone, have an incredibly rich history and deserve to have this recognised."
Bedford Corn Exchange
Bedford Corn Exchange is an elegant Victorian public building, enriched with classical detailing and architectural features, including an ornate ceiling with three glass domes.
Dated 1874, it was built to the designs of John Ladds RIBA (1835-1926) and Henry William Powell FRIBA (1847-1900). It replaced an earlier and smaller Corn Exchange, which stood nearby and was demolished in 1904.
The hall of the Corn Exchange was designed to be a spacious assembly room. The elegant interior was illuminated by three domed ceiling lights and large windows on the front and side walls.
The basement was designed to house offices, cloakrooms, a kitchen, hall keeper’s room and dining rooms.
In 1926, the Corn Exchange was refurbished with a new rock maple dance floor and ornate decoration. The walls and ceiling were painted in light pastel shades contrasting with the dark wood panelling, and the moulding of the ceiling was painted in various colours.
Harpur Suite
The Harpur Suite was built as Assembly Rooms between 1834 and 1835, to the designs of Thomas Gwyn Elger (1794-1841) an architect and builder, who served as Mayor of Bedford in 1830, 1835, and 1838.
He designed a number of notable buildings, including a 55-arch causeway at St Ives, Cambridgeshire (1822, listed at Grade II*), and the Harpur Trust girls’ and infants’ school in Bedford (1840, demolished in 1974).
An elegant public building, the Assembly Rooms was created in the Greek Revival style, as befits the home of an early learned society encouraging education in the arts and sciences.
The east wall of the Assembly Rooms features a stained-glass window by Thomas Willement (1786-1871), a leading Victorian designer of stained glass.