Friday Oct 26th will be a holiday in honour of H.R.H. The Prince of Wales, to open the Caird Hall. Each pupil will receive a box of chocolate and a flag – the gifts of the corporation.
“Sir James Caird who amassed a fortune through the jute trade in Dundee donated up to £100,00 for a new City Hall and Council Chamber. King George V & Queen Mary laid the foundation stone in 1914 by electric button press control from Caird’s Ashton Works. The electric buttons were formed from large pieces of Emerald and Jade. The Emerald, of 271 carats in weight, and one of the largest in the world, was presented to the King as a gift. The gem was later handed back and became incorporated into the Lord Provost’s Chain of Office.”
Souvenir Brochure of opening of Caird Hall, 26th October 1923
“Soon after the foundation stone had been laid, building work came to a halt because of the First World War, and it was not until 1923 that work was finally completed. The building, designed by city architect James Thomson, is constructed on a reinforced concrete framework. The ten doric columns facing City Square are each four feet in diameter and thirty-two feet high.
