Town Hall


	The Town Hall stands at the centre of Paisley across from the Abbey. Opened in 1882, it was the culmination of numerous attempts to build a Town Hall for the benefit of the people of Paisley.

In 1872 James Clark renewed the call for a Town Hall and asked for subscriptions to fund the building. In 1873 George A Clark left the sum of £20,000 in his will to fund the building of the Town Hall. This was followed with a pledge by the Clark family to fund entirely the cost of the building.

A competition was held to come up with design for the new Town Hall and over 50 designs were submitted. The winning entry was by a local firm of architects, Rennison & Scott, who had a practise in Gilmour Street. However, this design was deemed unsuitable by the Clark family who chose instead the firm of William Henry Lynn of Belfast.

Famous Buddies:

John Byrne, Artist and Playwright, was born in Paisley on 6th January 1940. He attended St Mirin’s Academy and then Glasgow School of Art. He has designed record covers for Donovan, The Beatles, Gerry Rafferty and Billy Connolly and also designed stage sets. Byrne also wrote Tutti Frutti, a 1987 television series, as well as The Slab Boys a play about life in Stoddarts Carpet Factory in the Fifties which went on to become a hit play and TV film. Amongst his potraits are Robert Tannahill, Billy Connolly and Robbie Coltrane. In 1997 he was presented with an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Paisley