Location
High on the north wall of the Quire (see Cathedral Plan).
is Erected in Memory
of JOHN VINING Esqr.
who died June 1st 1743
Aged 84 Years,
He was Six Times Mayor
of this town
Also of ELIZABETH
his wife who died Augst. 7th 1709
Aged 46 Years
Further Information
By 1736 the old Town Hall in the middle of High Street had fallen into a state of such disrepair that council business was conducted in Government House. The Mayor, John Vining and Alderman resolved to build a new hall on the same spot as the then existing building, the cost to be defrayed partly by subscription or loan. The first stone of the new structure was eventually laid by the Mayor, John Vining Esq., on 14th March 1739. The building was plainly intended as a significant improvement on its predecessor, including as it did, "additional stucco work", Vases over the pilasters of the Portico, a carpet for the table and cushions for the Councillors.
Vining entered the Corporation in 1691, was elected an Alderman in 1698 and was Mayor in 1701, 1704, 1707, 1715, 1722 and 1738. From 1704 until his death he lived in a house on High Street on the site of the present No. 114. He was buried within St. Thomas's Church.
[Information from www.history.inportsmouth.co.uk]
