Category:
Restoration& Rehabilitation

In 1876, the newly established town of Merrimac received a gift of funds for a Town Hall from William P. Sargent, a native son and successful Boston businessman. The town accepted the offer and Mr. Sargent commissioned Boston architect, Thomas W. Silloway to design the building.

The Merrimac Town Hall is a two-story brick building with brownstone trim and a slate roof. The original building housed town offices, the post office and public library, commercial space, and a spacious second floor auditorium capable of seating 600 people. The town held every town meeting in the auditorium through the the early 1960s. By the 1990s Merrimac had outgrown its town hall and considered the options: demolish or abandon the space or restore the building.

In 2002, the town voted to appropriate funds to restore and rehabilitate the historic building by excavating the basement to add office space, adding offices and meeting spaces to the upper levels, adding a small rear addition for an elevator and accessible bathrooms, and refurbishing the auditorium with museum exhibit space and for continued use as a meeting space.