Rochdale Central Library, Museum and Art Gallery
ROCHDALE CENTRAL LIBRARY, MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY, THE ESPLANADE
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1367096
- Date first listed:
- 12-Feb-1985
- List Entry Name:
- Rochdale Central Library, Museum and Art Gallery
- Statutory Address:
- ROCHDALE CENTRAL LIBRARY, MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY, THE ESPLANADE
Location
Location of this list entry and nearby places that are also listed. Use our map search to find more listed places.
Use of this mapping is subject to terms and conditions .
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale.
What is the National Heritage List for England?
The National Heritage List for England is a unique register of our country's most significant historic buildings and sites. The places on the list are protected by law and most are not open to the public.
The list includes:
 |
Buildings |
 |
Scheduled monuments |
 |
Parks and gardens |
 |
Battlefields |
 |
Shipwrecks |
Images of England Project
- Date:
- 1999-08-25
- Reference:
- IOE01/00526/17
- Rights:
- © Ms Pamela Jackson. Source: Historic England Archive
Local Heritage Hub
Unlock and explore hidden histories, aerial photography, and listed buildings and places for every county, district, city and major town across England.
Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1367096
- Date first listed:
- 12-Feb-1985
- List Entry Name:
- Rochdale Central Library, Museum and Art Gallery
- Statutory Address 1:
- ROCHDALE CENTRAL LIBRARY, MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY, THE ESPLANADE
- Statutory Address 2:
- ROCHDALE CENTRAL LIBRARY, MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY, THE ESPLANDE
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
Location
- Statutory Address:
- ROCHDALE CENTRAL LIBRARY, MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY, THE ESPLANADE
- Statutory Address:
- ROCHDALE CENTRAL LIBRARY, MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY, THE ESPLANDE
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- District:
- Rochdale (Metropolitan Authority)
- Parish:
- Non Civil Parish
- National Grid Reference:
- SD 89368 13188
Details
SD 81 SE ROCHDALE THE ESPLANADE (north-west side) 6/55 Rochdale Central Library, Museum and Art Gallery
G.V. II
Library, museum and art gallery, now library. Library 1883, museum and art gallery 1903 and 1913. Jesse Horsfall. Yorkshire stone with slate roof. The 1883 library consists of a central porch and entrance hall flanked on either side by parallel reading rooms. The 1903 extension added a linking passage, porch, hall and stairway to the left of the original building and a two-storey range with art gallery on the upper floor. The 1913 extension involved further rooms to the west and a diagonal wing, all on two storeys. The original library has 3 gables and is symmetrical about the smaller central one; it is all of one storey and has a low central porch with arcaded parapet, elliptical headed door opening with enriched spandrels, overlight enriched advanced gablet with ball finial and 3-light mullion and transom windows to either side with ovolo-moulding. The large gables to either side have 5-light ovolo-moulded mullion and transom windows with segmental heads and dripmoulds, heraldic and inscribed panels above, and ball finials. The linking passage is detailed similarly but has elliptical headed 3 and 4-light mullioned windows with Art Nouveau stained glass. The museum and art gallery has a 4-bay central section with a 3-bay gable to the right and diagonally-set gable to the left. Detailing is again similar but each gable includes 3 panels of carved figures, one representing science art and literature designed by C.J. Allan and carved by J.J. Millson. The museum was requisitioned in the war and has since been used as part of the library.
Listing NGR: SD8936813188
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
- Legacy System number:
- 358883
- Legacy System:
- LBS
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 08-Jun-2026 at 11:38:28.
Download a full scale map (PDF)End of official list entry
All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.