Shirehall, Shrewsbury

The building was commissioned to replace the Old Shirehall in Market Square. After deciding in the Old Shirehall was inadequate for their needs, county leaders decided to procure a new building: the site they selected had previously been occupied by a country house known as "Nearwell". Nearwell was commissioned by a local solicitor, William Wybergh How, in 1868 and became the home of his son, Walsham How, who went on to be the first Bishop of Wakefield: it subsequently remained in the How family until the mid-1940s and then became a hostel for boys studying at Shrewsbury Technical College before being demolished in August 1963. The foundation stone for the new building was laid by Sir…