Lord Paul Methuen commissioned the construction of a market hall and courthouse in 1783 at the top of Corsham High Street. It was built in the Neoclassical style and built in ashlar stone. The Market Hall was arcaded on the ground floor, so that markets could be held, with a small attic above.
In 1882 WH Bromley of Corsham was commissioned to add an extra floor to increase the building’s capacity. The arches were closed in, and the upper floor was built by reusing the ground floor, cornice and pediment stonework.
In 1895, following the creation of town councils, Corsham held its first Town Council meeting, chaired by George Fuller, the town’s Member of Parliament at the time, at the Methuen Hall as it was then known.
The Town Hall became an integral part of the town and played its part in the war effort during the First World War, when it became a Voluntary Aid Detachment Hospital for the Sick and wounded in October 1914. A total of 875 soldiers were treated there by 75 nurses – at an annual cost of £2,500.
Today, the Town Hall serves as the Town Council’s Office and a functions venue.
