HISTORY

History of the Piece Hall - the 18th Century

Commemorative plaque which is sited to one side of he South Gate

Halifax was a wool town. The town coat of arms features a sheep for that reason. As early as 1276 legislation was enacted to protect the woollen cloth weaving industry in the area - the infamous Gibbet Law which provided for trial and execution within 24 hours for anyone caught stealing. Between 1286 and 1650 there were 63 executions.

According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica 1797, "The cloths, at the first erecting of the woollen manufacturers in these parts, having been frequently stolen off the tenters in the night, a law was made by which the magistrates of Halifax were empowered to pass sentence on, and execute all offenders, if they were taken in the fact, or owned it, or if the stolen cloth was found upon them; provided also the crime was committed, and the criminal apprehended, within the liberties of the forest of Hardwick."

"Those found guilty were executed in the following manner: an axe was drawn by a pulley to the top of a wooden engine, and fastened by a pin, which being pulled out, the axe fell down in an instant and did its work. If they had stole an ox, horse or any other beast, it was led with them to the scaffold, and there fastened by a chord to the pin that held the axe; and when the signal was given by the jurors, whi were the first burghers within the several towns of the forest, the beast was driven away, and the pin plucked out, upon which the axe fell and did its office."

Records show that by 1469 the parish of Halifax contributed almost a third of the total cloth production in the West Riding, and the only parish producing more was Ripon. Four years later, production in Halifax had beaten even that of Ripon and was five times the output of Leeds and eight tiimes the output of Bradford.

The prosperity brought by wool also brought an increase in population; the township grew from just over 300 in 1439 to about 2,500 by 1566 and 5,000 by 1743. The parish of Halifax, which covered a much larger area than just the township, grew from about 1,000 in 1439 to 31,000 in 1743.

Cloth production was scattered throughout the parish and a central point was needed to enable merchants to meet producers to buy cloth. Halifax had a Cloth Hall - according to some sources, it was the first West Riding town to build a Cloth Hall, sometime before 1708 - but by the 1770's it was much too small and cloth was being sold in the street. At the same tiime, there is evidence suggesting that there were large scale clothiers (like Samuel Hill, some of whose papers have survived) who were selling directly to agents and who therefore did not need the Cloth Hall.

The Piece Hall was built by subscription between 1774 and 1779. The original subscribers paid £28 for a small room, with a door and window. List of shop occupiers in 1787. There are still a few shops of the original size to be found in the Piece Hall, usually by the stairs. Most modern Piece Hall shops comprise several of the old units merged into one - often with three windows and three doors but sometimes as many as six.

Smaller weavers, who could not afford a shop, were allowed to sell their cloth on the grass in the courtyard. The cobbles are modern. Old engravings show a grassed area with sheep to keep the grass short.

Below the East Side (the side with three stories) are cellars. These were originally called the "South Low Room" which was a yarn market. In 1787 the cellars became the Serge Room, with stands costing two shillings per annum.

Business was conducted on Saturdays. The gates opened at 8 a.m. to allow the arrival of weavers with their cloth for sale. By 9.45 all deliveries were expected to cease and trading started promptly at 10 a.m. Anyone sellng cloth before this time was fined. Trading lasted for two hours. The bell rang at 11.55 to warn everyone that trading would be ending soon and at noon trading ceased. Anyone selling cloth after noon was fined. From 12.30, merchants could bring in carts and pack horses, pack their goods and take them away. The Piece Hall closed at 4 p.m.

The Piece Hall, when first built, has an entrance in the South wall and another in the North wall. BY 1782 it was obvious that this was not adequate and the West gate was built. In 1785 a porter's lodge was added outside the North gate and over time additional shops were added running along the road to the lodge. The West gate is still there but the lodge and the additional shops have all gone.

That additional shops were needed demonstrates the success of the Piece Hall. This success did not last and as the Industrial Revolution got under way, so the need for the Piece Hall declined.

Piece Hall in the 19th Century

Piece Hall as a wholesale market

Piece Hall since 1976

	www.piecehall.info © Richard Porter & Stephanie Marriott The Piece Hall Shops Association 2002-2005