Whittimere Street drill hall explained

Whittimere Street drill hall
Type:Drill hall
Map Type:West Midlands
Pushpin Map Caption:Location within West Midlands
Location:Walsall
Built:1866
Used:1866-1984
Built For:War Office

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]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Walsall. The Drill Hall Project. 4 September 2017.
  2. Web site: South Staffordshire Regiment . Regiments.org . 21 February 2016 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20051228134003/http://www.regiments.org/regiments/uk/inf/038SStaf.htm . 28 December 2005 .
  3. Web site: South Staffordshire Regiment. The Long, Long Trail. 21 February 2016.
  4. Web site: 3rd Battalion, The Staffordshire Regiment (The Prince of Wales's). https://web.archive.org/web/20051227035347/http://regiments.org:80/regiments/uk/volmil-england/vinf-mi/st-3.htm. dead. 27 December 2005. Regiments.org. 4 September 2017.
  5. Web site: The MPV: The return of the 5th. Creative Walsall. 7 June 2015. 4 September 2017.