The Octogon Room

A Guide to all the Watering and Sea-Bathing Places; with a description of the Lakes ; a Sketch of a Tour in Wales and Itineraries. Illustrated with Maps and Views (1803) by R Philllips

The new Assembly-rooms are situated at the east end of the Circus between Bennet and Alfred Streets, and are therefore, more central to some part of the company. They were built under the direction of the late Mr Wood, architect, and cost upwards of £20,000. The first stone was laid in 1769 and they were finished in 1771. The ball-room is 105 feet long, nearly 43 wide, and 42 feet 6 inches high. One of the card rooms is an octogon of 48 feet diameter, adorned with a portrait of Captain Wade by Gainsborough; the other is 70 feet by 27 and contains a picture of Mr Tyson the late Master of Ceremonies.The new rooms form the most elegant and spacious suite of apartments dedicated to pleasure in the united kingdom. The conduct of the company who join in the festivities is regulated by articles.

Use the "Show me" link to locate the Octogon Room on the map. You may need to scroll down to see Octogon Room highlighted.

Note: The Octogon Room was one of the rooms in the Upper Assembly Rooms complex, and we cannot indicate its precise location on our map due to problems of scale.