Description:This plan shows the original site for the Institute, which was built on a garden and the site of other premises. Greystones (no 23 on the plan) partly masks the building.
The Nicholson Institute was presented to the town by Joshua Nicholson, a silk manufacturer, as a monument to Richard Cobden, the zealous campaigner for free trade. It opened in 1884 and contained a free library, premises for the school of art, picture galleries and a museum.