Built 1911 (1911) Opened 1911 Added to NRHP 7 March 1996 | NRHP Reference # 96000252 Area 6,100 m² | |
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Location Jct. of VT 106 and Pleasant St., Reading, Vermont MPS Historic Government Buildings MPS Architectural style Colonial Revival architecture Similar Shelburne Farms, American Precision Museum, Killington Ski Resort, ECHO Lake Aquarium, Cedar Swamp Covered | ||
Reading Town Hall, the town hall of Reading, Vermont, is located at the junction of Vermont Route 106 and Pleasant Street in the village of Felchville. Built in 1915 as a gift from a native son, the barn-like structure is a fine local example of Colonial Revival architecture, and has been a center of local civic activity since its construction. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.
Description and history
Reading Town Hall stands prominently at the southwest corner of VT 106 and Pleasant Street in Felchville, the rural community's principal village. It is a large 2-1/2 story wood frame structure, with bellcast gambrel roof, and an exterior clad in wooden shingles. The main facade faces east toward VT 106, and is symmetrical, with a centered entrance framed by paired pilasters and a corniced entablature. The entry is flanked by sash windows on either side, with three in the second story and one in the half story above. The interior has a large auditorium on the upper floor, with space for post office, town clerk, and a banquet hall on the ground floor.
The building was constructed in 1911, its funding provided by Wallace F. Robinson, a Reading native son who succeeded in business in Boston, Massachusetts. The building was designed by J.E. Morse of Springfield, and is unusual among the state's town halls for its barn-like appearance. Robinson in 1916 also provided the town with an endowment for the building's maintenance.