THE CORN EXCHANGE, AYLESBURY

This is the old Corn Exchange which almost goes unnoticed. It sits in the corner of Market Square, next to the old County Offices which is now the Crown Court.

The foundation stone was laid in 1864 & the building was completed in 1865. It was erected by a consortium of local business men known as the Aylesbury Market Company. They purchased and demolished the White Hart pub replacing it with a new cattle market (which disappeared in 1987 ?) and the Corn Exchange.

It was designed by D Brandom , and takes the form of a red brick triple triumphal arch (Romanesque I guess you would say) leading to further council offices. Above the arches the reception rooms have large mullioned & transomed windows.

There was a steep decline in the value of grain in the late 1870s & so the corn exchange never realised the profits its builders intended.

In 1901 it was sold to Aylesbury Urban District Council as a town hall. The Corn Exchange today houses council conference rooms and a coffee bar.

There are some interesting stone carvings on the front façade aswell as under the arches particularly over one inner doorway.

Press L to see the picture in detail. If you look through the arch you can see part of the county offices where the Gaol used to be, the old police station & the Waterside theatre beyond.

Its a damp morning but bright with blue skies.

P T & M are having the final push to clear the house garden & outbuildings as P leaves next Friday, then I take him to hospital for an op....difficult times ahead for him, though I will try to help as best I can.