The original corrugated iron building began life as the St John's Free Church of England in Clifford Street. It was purchased by the Congregationalist community in 1892 and moved to the Avenue, where it served as a church until the new Avenue Congregational Church was built in 1897. The iron building was then used as a meeting hall until it was replaced with the present brick building in 1933-4. During World War One it was used as a recreation/refreshment hall for soldiers and sailors. There is an account of this here: World War One: Southampton hall comforted soldiers before trenches.
Avenue Hall
The hall during the First World War when it was being used as a recreational venue for servicemen.
Avenue Hall: Interior
An interior view of the hall during the First World War.
see also
Further reading:
Southampton Occasional Notes (2nd Series), by ‘Townsman’, p39. (HS/h)
Avenue Hall 1914-1919. (HS/j)
Record of Five Years Work. (HS/j)
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