1. The History
The roots of the Liverpool Adult Deaf and Dumb Benevolent Society can be traced back to Victorian times and more specifically May 1864 when it was established by George Healey who was deaf himself. The premise was to give Deaf people equal access to the Scriptures. Operating out of a room in the School for the Deaf and Dumb in Oxford Street, the society had no premises of their own until they rented a room in Pleasant Street in 1869. Five years later in 1874 the society was given permission to hold Sunday services in the cemetery Chapel of St Mary’s in Cambridge Street given it was vacant.
However, these premises were considered suitable and 1877 the committee launched a building fund, with the support of the Mayor of Liverpool and her Majesty Queen Victoria, who made a donation of £5! In 1886 the committee got a lease from Lord Sefton for the land of Princes Avenue and Parkway and building commenced. In May 1887 H.R.H Princess Louise formally opened the Institute.
Founder George Healey passed away aged 84 in November 1927. Four years later in May 1931, the Society opened the George Healey memorial hall which was used as a men’s club. The lecture hall was used for lectures, meetings, social gatherings, while the chapel in the building was used for two services, every Sunday. In the late 1980s the Society relocated to Queens Drive in West Derby, Liverpool as it was more central and had a lot more office space. Following its closure in 1986, it was then used as a community centre for the Igbo community, one of the largest ethnic groups of south-east Nigeria, after the Ibo community had bought it for £50,000. In 2007 its condition became so bad they had to vacate it. Chief Angus Chukuemeka, chairman of the Ibo Community, which still owns the dilapidated building and reckons it will cost between £2m and £3m to redevelop it.
2. The Explore
The first stop on a series of early mornings on a family trip to Liverpool. This was an early and rare success. The entry was pretty wide open but as I moved through the side-buildings I could hear snoring emanating from a closed door in one of the rooms off the corridor. I’d read reports that someone was rough sleeping here so made the decision to tip-top past on to the church. The main hall is really lovely and worth coming to solely for the roof. The old organ and the stained glass are nice bonus. It’s not the biggest of places but its well worth an hour of your time. It’s also very photogenic from the outside but on this pretty overcast day, it was hard to do it justice.
I hope it gets saved as it’s a pretty nice place.
3. The Pictures
A few externals:
And we’re in. Social club side first:
On to the main hall:
Up the stairs we go:
On to the main church hall:
Great stain-glass:
The Old Joanna:
In the smalle ante-room, someone’s half-inched the little fireplace:
And finally, THAT roof:
The roots of the Liverpool Adult Deaf and Dumb Benevolent Society can be traced back to Victorian times and more specifically May 1864 when it was established by George Healey who was deaf himself. The premise was to give Deaf people equal access to the Scriptures. Operating out of a room in the School for the Deaf and Dumb in Oxford Street, the society had no premises of their own until they rented a room in Pleasant Street in 1869. Five years later in 1874 the society was given permission to hold Sunday services in the cemetery Chapel of St Mary’s in Cambridge Street given it was vacant.
However, these premises were considered suitable and 1877 the committee launched a building fund, with the support of the Mayor of Liverpool and her Majesty Queen Victoria, who made a donation of £5! In 1886 the committee got a lease from Lord Sefton for the land of Princes Avenue and Parkway and building commenced. In May 1887 H.R.H Princess Louise formally opened the Institute.
Founder George Healey passed away aged 84 in November 1927. Four years later in May 1931, the Society opened the George Healey memorial hall which was used as a men’s club. The lecture hall was used for lectures, meetings, social gatherings, while the chapel in the building was used for two services, every Sunday. In the late 1980s the Society relocated to Queens Drive in West Derby, Liverpool as it was more central and had a lot more office space. Following its closure in 1986, it was then used as a community centre for the Igbo community, one of the largest ethnic groups of south-east Nigeria, after the Ibo community had bought it for £50,000. In 2007 its condition became so bad they had to vacate it. Chief Angus Chukuemeka, chairman of the Ibo Community, which still owns the dilapidated building and reckons it will cost between £2m and £3m to redevelop it.
2. The Explore
The first stop on a series of early mornings on a family trip to Liverpool. This was an early and rare success. The entry was pretty wide open but as I moved through the side-buildings I could hear snoring emanating from a closed door in one of the rooms off the corridor. I’d read reports that someone was rough sleeping here so made the decision to tip-top past on to the church. The main hall is really lovely and worth coming to solely for the roof. The old organ and the stained glass are nice bonus. It’s not the biggest of places but its well worth an hour of your time. It’s also very photogenic from the outside but on this pretty overcast day, it was hard to do it justice.
I hope it gets saved as it’s a pretty nice place.
3. The Pictures
A few externals:
And we’re in. Social club side first:
On to the main hall:
Up the stairs we go:
On to the main church hall:
Great stain-glass:
The Old Joanna:
In the smalle ante-room, someone’s half-inched the little fireplace:
And finally, THAT roof:
