Site Event/Activity record ECH6658 - Historic Building Investigation: Former Albert Hotel, 160 Albert Road, Widnes, Halton

An historic building survey (level 1) was undertaken in 2018 for the former Albert Hotel, 160 Albert Road, Widnes, in advance of demolition and re-development into residential apartments. A fire in 2016 decimated the building, destroying the roof, first floor and interior of the ground floor and basement; because of its ruinous condition, the investigation was limited largely to the exterior of the building. The precise date at which the hotel was built is uncertain, though it is referenced in an advertisement in a local paper in 1882. The presence of carved columns and decorative string courses shows that, prior to the fire, the building would have been a fine example of a Vernacular Revival style; the use of sandstone around the external apertures is typical of this period. The hotel was later extended during the early and late twentieth century. (1)