In March 1900 Mr S Stevenson, who had executed several commissions for the Lord Mayor Alderman R. J. McConnell was appointed architect. As the proposed building made of imported Portland stone would be a purpose-built showpiece on a par with Belfast’s other new prominent buildings, including the City Hall and St Anne’ Cathedral a suitable site was needed. This controversial new site was made available by the Royal Academical Institution (Inst) in College Square one of the most fashionable addresses in Belfast at that time.

In May 1902 workmen arrived in College Square East to lay out the ground for the foundations of the new Municipal Technical Institute. On the 26 May 1902, the building contractor, W. J. Campbell & Sons began work on the new Institute. By the autumn of 1904 the new building had reached its third floor when an additional floor was proposed to accommodate the School of Art. The chief contractor W. J. Campbell &Sons were supplemented by 22 other Belfast companies, including Musgrave & Co. Ltd who provided the steam engine at the heart of the heating system. The windows were designed by stained glass artists and manufacturers Ward and Partners of Belfast. There were also contributions from suppliers in Great Britain.


Below is a link to an interview with an ex Tech employee, Bertie McClure, talking about why the building needed to be built...

BBC Legacies - Architectural Heritage

The Windows

The windows were designed by stained glass artists and manufacturers Ward and Partners of Belfast. Ten stained glass windows adorned the walls of the Central Hall and the main staircase. The windows survived the bombings from the second world war and the ‘troubles’ and the original windows still remain in the College Square East building. This building closed its doors to students in June 2011 but while open the windows inspired countless students who were encouraged before examinations in the Central Hall to gaze upon the mottos from luminaries of the past to help inspire them to greater effort. Illustrations from the windows exhaulted the arts and the industries at that time and each window was dedicated to a theme as follows:-

Art; Chemistry; Literature; Maths; Mechanical Engineering; Natural Science; Naval Architecture; Physics – Electrical Engineering; Textile Industries and a dedication window following the official opening in 1907.

Inspirational quotations are as follows:-

‘Do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of’ – Franklin;
‘To love what is good and take delight in what is beautiful are the greatest pleasures a human being can enjoy in this world’ – Lord Dufferin;
‘Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm’ – Emerson;
‘A good book is the precious life-blood of a master-spirit’ - Milton;
‘No pleasure is comparable to the standing upon the vantage ground of Truth’ – Bacon;
‘Nature never did betray the heart that loved her’ – Wordsworth;
‘Few things are impossible to diligence and skill’ – Johnson;
‘He who would search for pearls must dive below’ – Dryden; and ‘I’ll put a girdle round about the earth in forty minutes’ – Shakesphere.