Athenaeum Princess Street Manchester

Designed along similar lines to the Travellers' Club in London which Barry designed in 1829. It was intended to provide a venue for literary, scientific and political debate by gentlemen merchants etc who each paid 30 shillings for their membership. The design was influenced by a book illustrating the palaces of Rome and Florence in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The foundation stone was laid in May 1837 and the building was opened two years later. Its construction was similar to the mills of the time with loadbearing brickwork and cast iron columns behind the stone external facing. The building was badly damaged by fire in 1879. As part of the restoration work, an additional storey and raised roof line were added