Canterbury Street drill hall, Blackburn

The building was designed by Stevens and Robinson as the headquarters of the 2nd Lancashire Rifle Volunteer Corps and was completed by Richard Hacking, a local builder, in 1870.[1] The unit evolved to become the 1st Volunteer Battalion, The East Lancashire Regiment in 1889 and 4th Battalion, The East Lancashire Regiment in 1908.[2] The battalion was mobilised at the drill hall in August 1914 before being deployed to Gallipoli and ultimately to the Western Front.[3] The Battalion amalgamated with the 5th Battalion to form the 4th/5th Battalion at the Canterbury Street drill hall in 1921 but the 4th Battalion was reformed there again in 1939 just before the Second World War.[2]

Following a re-organisation, the battalion converted to become the 93 (East Lancashire) Signal Squadron, 38 Signal Regiment (Volunteers) in 1971.[2] The squadron was disbanded in March 2010[4] but the drill hall is still used by the Army Cadet Force.[5]