Baskerville House Birmingham, Birmingham

Baskerville House, situated in Centenary Square, Birmingham, has a storied history deeply intertwined with the city's civic and architectural development. Originally known as the Civic Centre, Baskerville House stands on the site that was once the residence of John Baskerville, a prominent local figure. His home was demolished to make way for civic developments after his remains were relocated due to canal constructions in the area.

Before Baskerville House was built, the site held Baskerville and Gibson's Basins, used by the Birmingham Aluminium Company and a nearby rolling mill. With industrial decline in the early 20th century, these were filled in to make room for the proposed Civic Centre, initiated by the Birmingham City Council in 1919. After a failed design competition in 1926, the council worked with S.N. Cooke and later commissioned T. Cecil Howitt to design the building. Construction of Baskerville House started in 1938, was halted by World War II, and included temporary features like a rear brick wall.

Baskerville House emerged as the sole structure completed from the grander Civic Centre plan, which would have spanned the entire Centenary Square and included various other civic buildings. Post-war, shifts in architectural tastes and the economic impact of the war altered the original expansive plans, leaving Baskerville House as a standalone symbol of the era’s civic ambitions.

The building, completed with the Birmingham coat of arms, later served as offices for the Birmingham City Council and was notably extended in 2007. Today, it stands as a testament to the city’s historical and architectural heritage, capturing the evolution of civic planning in Birmingham from industrial uses through to modern civic administration.