Martineau Galleries

Martineau Galleries is a proposed mixed-use development for Birmingham, England which is mothballed until at least spring 2014. It connects the Eastside to the city centre core, a major retail area.

It is known that the Augustinian Priory of St Thomas of Canterbury was located on the site in the 13th century. The entrance to the hospital was on what is now Bull Street, then Chapel Street, and ran along Steelhouse Lane, then Priory Congree. In 1536, the Priory was dissolved and the structures on site were demolished in 1547.

The site remained as ruins for 150 years until it was purchased by John Pemberton in 1700. John Pemberton developed the site around Old Square and created a residential district on the site. In the 18th century, the Barley Market moved from the Bullring area to the junction of Bull Street and Dale End. In 1763, Sampson Lloyd and John Taylor established a private banking business known as Taylors & Lloyds on the site which would develop into Lloyds Bank.

The construction of Corporation Street linked New Street to Old Square and the area fast became a major area of the city centre. It became a tram terminus and new entertainment businesses were established in the area such as the Grand Theatre.

The site became a conglomerate of buildings accessed via back alleys. There were two hotels and five public houses by 1890 as well as a chemical works on the Lower Priory. Dalton Street cut through the site however this street was removed during the 1960s development. On the eastern side of Dale End were houses and a school.

The construction of the Priory Queensway and Masshouse Circus prompted a new wave of development in the area during the 1960s and 1970s with such buildings as The McLaren Building and Londonderry House behind it. The construction of the Priory Queensway resulted in the demolition of the Grand Theatre and many other old derelict Victorian properties.

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