City Hall (Chicopee, Massachusetts)

City Hall

City Hall
Location Chicopee, Massachusetts
Coordinates 42°8′55″N 72°36′52″W / 42.14861°N 72.61444°W / 42.14861; -72.61444Coordinates: 42°8′55″N 72°36′52″W / 42.14861°N 72.61444°W / 42.14861; -72.61444
Built 1871
Architect Charles Edward Parker
Architectural style Romanesque
NRHP Reference #

74002052

[1]
Added to NRHP July 30, 1974
Chicopee City Hall

City Hall is a historic city hall in Chicopee, Massachusetts. Located in the heart of Chicopee at Market Square, the building (built 1871) is a strongly Italianate structure, with a 147-foot (45 m) tower modeled on that of the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, Italy. It was designed by Charles Edward Parker.

History and architecture

Chicopee purchased land from the Ames Manufacturing Company in 1869 as a site for its new city hall, and a committee of leading citizens was established to oversee its design and construction. The committee selected Charles E. Parker of Boston to design the new building, and construction took place in 1871. Parker's design was modelled on the Palazzo Vecchio, the historic town hall of Florence in Italy; the building was dedicated on December 21, 1871.[2]

By far the most prominent feature of the building is its 147-foot (45 m) tower, which echoes that of its Florentine inspiration, and is topped by a golden eagle statue weighing 54 pounds (24 kg) and sporting a 7-foot (2.1 m) wingspan. The tower houses a bell, which was historically used on public occasions and to announce fire alarms. A clock mechanism was added in 1888, with faces on three of the tower's four sides.[2]

The building continues to be used for city offices. The police station was originally located in the basement, but was moved in 1929 to a newly constructed annex.[2] The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.[1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 National Park Service (2008-04-15). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 3 "MACRIS inventory record for Chicopee City Hall". Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Retrieved 2013-12-09.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/27/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.