Liverpool Cotton Exchange Building, Grade II listed commercial building in Old Hall Street, Liverpool, United Kingdom
The Liverpool Cotton Exchange Building is a large trading structure occupying an entire city block on Old Hall Street, designed with large windows for inspecting cotton samples. Inside, it displays Victorian features with polished Larvikite columns and now serves as a business center with multiple office floors and two basement levels.
The building opened in 1906 when Liverpool dominated the global cotton trade, constructed with neoclassical facades and baroque corner towers. It was built during an era when telegraph technology delivered daily price information from New York and Bombay to its trading floor.
The building was where merchants gathered daily to trade cotton and discuss price movements in the global market. The spaces still reflect this trading culture through their generous halls designed for business gatherings.
The building today functions as a working business space, with preserved Victorian architectural features throughout its accessible areas. Visitors should know that multiple floors are available to explore and the basement levels contain historical details worth seeing.
Hidden in the basement is an unused dining room with dark wood paneling and Italian landscape paintings tucked into an alcove. This concealed space with its large skylight is a fascinating remnant from a past era.
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