» Day 4-Part 2: Meeting the Lord Mayor of Liverpool and a Tour of Town Hall   

This is the seventh blog post in a series written by Georgette Mayo, Avery Research Center’s Processing Archivist, reflecting on her trip to London and Liverpool in October 2024.

Across the street from the Walker Art Gallery resides Liverpool’s Town Hall. We were greeted by staff and Councillor Richard Kemp CBE, formally known as the Lord Mayor of Liverpool. One of the significant roles of the Lord Mayor is to promote the city, which he graciously did for our delegation.   

Councillor Kemp acknowledged Liverpool’s major part in the international slave trade and offered his apologies. He mentions how the city seeks to make amends. One of the amends was naming the (Nelson) ‘Mandela Suite,’ the meeting room where we gathered.  Awards and gifts were exchanged between Dr. Kim Cliett Long, representing the Jonathan Green Maritime Cultural Center, and Kemp. Each delegation member received a gold pin of the Liver Bird, a mythical creature symbolizing Liverpool.   

James O’Keefe provided an animated guided tour of the Town Hall. During the tour, we experienced the grand opulence of the Concert Room in St George’s Hall. The grandeur continued in the Great Hall, famed as “the pinnacle of Liverpool’s civic pride.”¹ 

The walls surrounding the Hall hold tall marble statues of noted Englishmen. Again, we observed a critique and interrogation of these noted figures. Michelle Charters (of the International Slavery Museum) was part of the “Liverpool Black History Month” initiative, which identified the statues in the Hall. Each statue has two text panels. On one side is a text panel noting the statue subject’s achievements.  The second panel, in bold yellow and white lettering on a black background, reveals the statue subject’s role in the international slave trade. The initiative’s goal is to “redress the history of statues in St George’s Hall and reclaim the building as a space for all communities.”² 

In sharp contrast behind the Grand Hall’s walls, is the Court Room with a dreary stairwell leading to the prison cells.  

After the tour we rejoined in the Mandela Suite, where we enjoyed refreshments and took pictures with the Lord Mayor. What a grand way to signify our last day in Liverpool. 

Footnotes

1. St George’s Hall. “Guided Tours at St George’s Hall,” https://stgeorgeshallliverpool.co.uk/events/guided-tours-st-georges-hall/ Accessed 17 December 2024. ↩︎
2. Liverpool Black History Month. “Black History Month 2023, Time to Inspire, Reflect and Celebrate,” https://stgeorgeshallliverpool.co.uk/homepage/black-history-month-2023-time-to-inspire-reflect-and-celebrate/ Accessed 17 December 2024. ↩︎

Image Credits

1. Georgette Mayo, “Councillor Richard Kemp CBE, Lord Mayor of Liverpool speaking to our delegation,” personal photograph.
2. Ibid., “Dr. Kim Cliett Long presenting a gift to the Lord Mayor of Liverpool,” personal photograph.
3. Ibid., “The Lord Mayor presenting a gift to Dr. Kim Cliett Long,” personal photograph.
4. Ibid., “The Concert Room stage,” personal photograph.
5. Ibid., “Statue of William Brown Bart,” personal photograph. 
6. Ibid., “Biographical sketch of Sir William Brown,” personal photograph 
7. Ibid., “William Brown bio from the Liverpool Black History Month 2023 initiative,” personal photograph. 
8. Ibid., “The Court Room in Liverpool Town Hall,” personal photograph. 
9. Ibid., “The stairwell leading to the prison,” personal photograph.
10. Ibid., “Georgette Mayo with the Lord Mayor of Liverpool,” personal photograph.