The Sheffield Corn Exchange was a grand Victorian building built in 1881. Designed by Matthew Hadfield (who also designed the Cholera Monument, Cathedral Church of St Marie, Sheffield and the Wicker Arches) for the Duke of Norfolk.
It was built in a grand Neo-tudor style with red brick, stone arches and an oak roof. The total cost of this stunning and imposing building was said to be around £55,000 (around £8,680,645 today).
The Corn Exchange replaced the old building which could no longer cope with trade – in 1860 Sheffield had a thriving corn business and the streets would be lined with:
The building would also house the city’s Register Office for births, marriages and deaths. The Corn Exchange would remain in use for almost 90-years, and in the post-war redevelopment phase there were “were hopes the building could be given the prominence it deserved under plans unveiled by the city council.”
Sadly, it would never come to fruition. Before those plans had been enacted a huge blaze ripped through the building in February 1947.
The fire reported as Sheffield’s worst since the Blitz trapped occupants, but firefighters rescued two caretakers and a couple, while police alerted two other couples and two children to safety. With hydrants frozen, crews pumped canal water to protect the wooden Sheaf Market as flames engulfed the Register Office.
The blaze gutted the hall and roof. The shell housed a banana facility from 1954 until 1961 council clearance plans. Demolition in June 1962 evicted two banks and a pub for road expansion, followed by a temporary parking lot in October 1963.
Never rebuilt, the landmark was absorbed into the Park Square road network, now part of the Castlegate Redevelopment project.
What became of this once bustling commercial hub? The historic site was never rebuilt, ultimately absorbed into the road network surrounding the Park Square roundabout and Castlegate district – an area currently undergoing transformation through the Castlegate Redevelopment project.
A tragic conclusion for the former marketplace, once celebrated as one of Sheffield’s finest architectural treasures.
Did you ever hear stories about Sheffield Corn Exchange? Take a look at the gallery and see how what looks so familiar today was very different just 60 years ago.
1. Car park
In the foreground is a temporary car park on the site of the old Corn Exchange, Sheffield, October 1963. The Corn Exchange was severely damaged by fire in 1947 and demolished in 1962
2. Corn Exchange
General view of the old Corn Exchange, Sheffield, showing the new Park Hill redevelopment flats in the background and part of the wholesale fruit market. The building was severely damaged by fire in 1947 and demolished in 1962
3. Corn Exchange
The Corn Exchange, Sheffield city, pictured in June 1961. The Corn Exchange was built for the Duke of Norfolk in 1881. The central hall was gutted by fire in 1947, and the offices surrounding it were demolished in 1964. | Picture Sheffield
4. Corn Exchange
The Corn Exchange, decorated for Queen Victoria's visit to Sheffield in May 1897 | Picture Sheffield, from R. S Smiths Old Sheffield Vol 4