Free Trade Hall

The Free Trade Hall, Peter Street, Manchester, was a public hall constructed in 1853–6 on St Peter's Fields, the site of the Peterloo Massacre and is now a hotel. The hall was built to commemorate the repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846. The architect was Edward Walters The hall subsequently was owned by Manchester Corporation, was bombed in the Manchester Blitz and rebuilt. It was Manchester's premier concert venue until the construction of the Bridgewater Hall in 1996. It was designated a Grade II* listed building on 18 December 1963. The Free Trade Hall was built as a public hall between 1853 and 1856 by Edward Walters on land given by Richard Cobden in St Peter's Fields, the site of the Peterloo Massacre. Two earlier halls had been...