The Rechabite Hall

The Shekinah Church use the upper rooms. Are they and the Rechabite Society one and the same?

I do not know enough at the moment; it seems the Shekinah are an evangelical Christain Church with a Hebrew name. Thank you for the information, something else for me to study.

I first got to know this building in 1964 when as a very young Young Liberal(aged just 14)this building was the Headquarters of the Liberal Party in the St Ives Constituency. It was then named The Liberal Hall. I continued to know and often to work in this building during Elections, and during one General Election as assistant Agent I used to sleep in the Office as the lock on the front door was not very good and there was a fear that the building could be broken into by our Political Opponents and when the upper hall was being used for Fund Raising purposes such as Jumble Sales. In the 1970's the lower Hall was converted into the Penzance Liberal Club.

The Penzance Liberal Club flowered for a few months but there was a problem. The Committee wanted a Middle Class Club but instead had the beginnings of a very good Working Mens Club. So the Committee decided to push out the Working Men and to attract in a Middle Class Membership. While they were very successful at driving away a substantial proportion of their existing membership they totally failed to attract in the Middle Class Membership that they wanted.

When the Liberal Club opened we had a sizeable Loan from the Bank as well as a Loan from the Brewery. The interest on the loan from the Brewery was based upon our Barrelage figures. In essence the more alcoholic drinks that we sold that we bought from the Brewery the better. I can remember just before the Liberal Club opened we were all terrified of this Barrelage figure. We were convinced that we would never achieve it. But not long after we opened we exceeded the Barrelage figure. What this meant was that the interest on the loan from the Brewery was now Nil %.

For a short time both the Brewery and the Bank were very happy with our progress. However the Committee were looking around the Membership and deciding that this was not what they wanted.

Unfortunately as they pushed out the Working Men the sales of Beer and other alcoholic drinks fell and soon the Liberal Club was falling short of the barrelage figure and were having to pay interest to the Brewery and with the fall in sales they were upsetting the Bank. I by this time had been pushed out as I had spoken out against the idea of the Middle Class Club instead calling for the Committee to accept that it had a potentially very good Working Mens Club. But instead of taking any notice of me I was pushed out.

Soon the Liberal Club was in trouble and not long afterwards closed and was Sold to become the Video Library as in the photo. As a matter of interest when it was the Liberal Hall and later the Liberal Club there was a similar board to the one in the photo stating Video Library hanging in the same place on the front of the building. Behind the board carved into the granite is Rechabite Hall.

I was once told that this building was the first place in Penzance where Moving Pictures were shown in Penzance. During its long life this building has played a small but important part in the life of Penzance and its good people.

I find myself wondering what the building is used for now. Surely the ground floor is no longer a Video Library? I would be fascinated to know what the building is being used for in 2016. As a long(50 odd years) Member of the Liberal Party I would love it if the Liberal Party could once again own and use this building perhaps even to once again use it as a Liberal Club.

During my long career in the Liberal Party which started in this building I have been a Parliamentary Candidate, Councillor, Member of the National Executive of the Party,Regional and Constituency Officer etc. Before anybody thinks that the Liberal Party has anything to do with the so called Lib Dem Party it does not although had the Penzance Liberal Club succeeded it would almost certainly be now owned by the Lib Dem Party.