Victoria Hall is the building that defines Cobourg. The neoclassical sandstone front, with its pillared portico and clock-towered cupola, sits four-square on King Street and looks more like a small provincial parliament than a town hall — which is more or less what its 1860 builders had in mind. The interior holds a concert hall, the council chamber, and a courtroom modelled on the Old Bailey in London, still in occasional ceremonial use.
The building is open to the public on weekdays and for events. The ground-floor Art Gallery of Northumberland (free entry) is worth a quick walk-through for its Canadian art collection and rotating shows. Concerts in the upstairs Concert Hall are an experience in themselves — the acoustic is exceptional for a town this size. Look up at the ceilings: the trompe-l'œil plasterwork is original.