Whittimere Street drill hall

Former military installation

52°35′09″N 1°58′39″W / 52.58597°N 1.97758°W / 52.58597; -1.97758TypeDrill hallSite historyBuilt1866Built forWar OfficeIn use1866-1984

The Whittimere Street drill hall is a former military installation in Walsall, West Midlands.

History

The building was designed as the headquarters of the 3rd Staffordshire Rifle Volunteer Corps and was completed in 1866.[1] This unit evolved to become the 2nd Volunteer Battalion, the South Staffordshire Regiment in 1885 and the 5th Battalion, the South Staffordshire Regiment in 1908.[2] The drill hall was substantially remodelled in 1910.[1] The battalion was mobilised at the drill hall in August 1914 before being deployed to the Western Front.[3]

The presence at the drill hall was reduced to a single company, B (South Stafford) Company, 5th/6th (Territorial) Battalion, The Staffordshire Regiment (The Prince of Wales's), in 1967 which evolved to become D Company, 2nd Battalion, Mercian Volunteers in 1975.[4] After the battalion left the drill hall in 1984, it was decommissioned and subsequently converted for use as a nightclub.[5]

References

  1. ^ a b "Walsall". The Drill Hall Project. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  2. ^ "South Staffordshire Regiment". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 28 December 2005. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
  3. ^ "South Staffordshire Regiment". The Long, Long Trail. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
  4. ^ "3rd Battalion, The Staffordshire Regiment (The Prince of Wales's)". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 27 December 2005. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  5. ^ "The MPV: The return of the 5th". Creative Walsall. 7 June 2015. Retrieved 4 September 2017.