Saturday, 5 July 2008
The original tea room is now known as the mayoress's drawing room. The copy of the portrait of Mrs Siddons by Sir Joshua Reynolds is a reminder of the theatrical life of the town. This centred on the corporation’s theatre in the market place (where Mrs Siddons herself appeared on stage), which flourished as part of the racing festivities.
Other portraits in the room are of the 2nd viscount Halifax, owner of Hickleton Hall and father of the lord Halifax who was Foreign Secretary on the eve of the Second World War, Archdeacon F G Sandford, vicar of Doncaster from 1905 to 1928, and T B Mason, town clerk from 1835 to 1867.
