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Cheney Hall
 Cheney
Hall is located at 177 Hartford Rd., in the heart of the Historic
District. The building is an historic Victorian structure and today
still serves the purposes for which it was originally built: theatrical
and musical events, parties, balls and banquets, and lectures and
meetings.
Cheney Hall was built by Cheney Brothers immediately after the Civil
War as a community cultural center and theater. It was designed by the
artist/architect C. H. Hammatt Billings and was dedicated in 1867 by
Horace Greeley. The architecture is that of the French Second Empire
style with features including mansard roof, brick and brownstone arches,
carved oak and chestnut trim and a magnificently restored 1866 E. & G.
G. Hook tracker organ built into the rear wall of the stage.
Over the years the Hall saw many other uses such as high school
graduations, boxing exhibitions, and as a hospital during the infamous
flu epidemic of 1918, when the usually gay hall was filled with rows and
rows of beds, dimly lighted and smelling of carbolic and ether. From the
1920’s to the 1970’s the Hall served as a fabric showroom for silk and
other textile products.
Life as a showroom came to an end in the 1970’s and the Hall was
virtually abandoned. Cheney Hall was threatened by demolition by neglect
until in 1978 the Historic District was created. That was the impetus
for preservation of the mill area and also for the Hall. In 1982 the
Hall was donated to the Town and the Cheney Hall Foundation was created
by the Manchester Board of Directors to restore and operate Cheney Hall.
The Little Theater of Manchester leased Cheney Hall and agreed to
assist in fundraising for the restoration of the building. LTM also acts
as the rental agent for private functions held in the Hall. Restoration
of the building was completed in 1991 and 124 years after the original
dedication, Cheney Hall was rededicated on June 29, 1991.
Cheney Hall is available for public and private use. Further
information is available by calling (860) 647-9824 or by visiting
www.cheneyhall.org
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