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Taunton City Hall
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Taunton City Hall (left) and the nearby Leonard Block
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| Location: | Taunton, Massachusetts |
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| Built: | 1848/1896 |
| Architect: | Earl E. Ryder (1848) |
| Architectural style: | Renaissance revival |
| Governing body: | City of Taunton |
| Part of: | Church Green (Taunton, Massachusetts) (#77000168) |
| Added to NRHP: | December 16, 1977 |
Taunton City Hall is an historic city hall containing the offices of the municipal government for the city of Taunton, Massachusetts, including the office of the mayor and the city council chambers. The building was originally constructed in 1848, and expanded in 1896.[1] It is a contributing property to the Church Green national historic district, located at the intersection of U.S. Route 44 and State Route 140.
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The current city hall is located on land once owned by Marcus Morton, former governor of Massachusetts. Construction of the original building began in March 1848 and was completed in November of that same year. In 1853, a second story was added to the building. The original brick building was designed by Earl E, Ryder.
Taunton High School was located in the second floor of city hall between 1854 and 1885.
In 1889, a memorial plaque listing the names of Tauntonians killed in action during the American Civil War was dedicated inside Taunton City Hall.
In July 1896 the original castle-like facade of city hall was removed, and replaced with a large granite addition designed in the Renaissance revival style by architect J.Merrill Brown at a cost of $45,000.
Taunton City Hall also contains memorial plaques to city victims of World War I and World War II.[2]
On August 17, 2010, a four-alarm fire caused an estimated $500,000 in damage to the building.[3] In January 2011, officials announced that the fire was arson.[4]