The first civic building in the area was a single storey public hall in Orford Road, Walthamstow, which probably dated back to the first half of the 19th century. This was demolished and replaced by an
Italianate style town hall in Orford Road in 1866. After the area became an
urban district in 1895 and then a
municipal borough in 1929, civic leaders decided to procure a purpose-built town hall: the site chosen for the new building had previously been occupied by Chestnuts Farm, also known as Clay Farm. They decided that the new town hall would be flanked to the south east by an assembly hall which would be built in the same architectural style and at the same time as the town hall. The building was designed by
Philip Dalton Hepworth in the
stripped classical style. The design involved a symmetrical main frontage with 19 bays facing onto Forest Road with the end bays projecting forwards; the central section featured a three-bay full-height
portico with
piers supporting a
frieze above containing the words "Walthamstow Town Hall"; there was a tall
copper-clad clock tower at roof level. File:Walthamstow Town Hall Panel Navvy.jpg|Navvy File:Walthamstow Town Hall Panel Mechanic.jpg|Mechanic File:Walthamstow Town Hall Panel Drilling.jpg|Drilling File:Walthamstow Town Hall sculpture Education 2.jpg|Education File:Walthamstow Town Hall sculpture Fellowship 2.jpg|Fellowship File:Walthamstow Town Hall sculpture Motherhood 2.jpg|Motherhood File:Walthamstow Town Hall sculpture Recreation 2.jpg|Recreation File:Walthamstow Town Hall sculpture Work 2.jpg|Work The assembly hall, which was also completed in 1942, was used as a
British Restaurant during the
Second World War. The assembly hall hosted a concert performance by
Yehudi Menuhin in January 1960 and by
Plácido Domingo in July 1974. Queen
Elizabeth II and the
Duke of Edinburgh visited the town hall and had lunch with civic officials in March 2012. The building also hosted the
Antiques Roadshow in December 2014 and, again, in January 2015. The council approved an extensive programme of renovation works to the town hall and the assembly hall in October 2019; the works authorised also included improved landscaping with water jets, night-time illumination and a reflection pool. The renovation of the town hall was completed in 2021 with further changes including the creation of Fellowship Square and the Queen Elizabeth II memorial garden at the rear with a copy of
The Arch by
Henry Moore. == References ==