A History of the Methodist Chapel in Wetherby

The first known meeting house and the opening of the new chapel 1829

Despite a careful search through John Wesley's journal and other papers, it has not been possible to find any reference to any visit he may have made to Wetherby. On the other hand it is known that he visited Leeds, York, Knaresborough, Tadcaster and Otley, so if he did not actually come to the town, his visits to near by places must have been well known and his influence undoubtedly spread as far as Wetherby.

It has also not been possible, so far, to learn where Methodists met for worship before the erection of their first meeting house in 1794, but there must surely have been a group of people, calling themselves Methodists, who got together and decided that there were sufficient of them to justify a special building in which to meet for worship.

And so in 1794, only three years after the death of John Wesley, a plot of land was purchased from Mr. Mark Pitts, at the bottom of what was then known as Pitts Yard (later Fox Yard, because the building until recently occupied by Messer"s FitzGerald Hart and Son was formally The Fox Inn) for the sum of £36. 16s. 0d. (The site of the meeting house is now occupied by a new building and used by the Wetherby Silver Band as their headquarters). The plot measured 30ft. back to front, and 38ft. wide, some 98 ft. back from what is known as Bank Street.

There was a gallery in the new building, under which Mr. Pitts retained space for a rope-walk, on which he made ropes and string. The building was constructed of "Wetherby stone" and had a grey-slated roof.

Messers. Barton and Hargill were paid £65. 8s. 9d. for the masonry and Calibe Burrell was paid £88. 17s.11d. making a total of £198. 2s. 8d. The sum of £81. 2s. 11½d. remained to be raised at the opening of the Chapel.

The Rev. William Radcliffe was appointed to the Wetherby Methodist Circuit in the year 1807, and in his report to the Wesleyan Magazine in May 1809 he wrote "The cause of God is prospering among us at Wetherby. Within two months 60 persons have found Peace with God."

The old Meeting House was sold back again to Mr Pitts in 1829 when the present Chapel was opened. The only remaining remnant of the old Meeting House, so far as we are aware, is the slab over the entrance to the block of offices in "Fox Yard".

The present Methodist Chapel (previously known as "Wesleyan Chapel") was erected on land purchased from Mr. James Wiggins, for the sum of £760. (The land was shown on the plan provided at the Great Sales of Wetherby in the year 1824 at lot no. 27).

The first stone of the new building was laid on the 28th April 1829 and the Utley Brothers carried out the masonry work, while T. and W. Green did the joinery work, at a total cost of £720. The pulpit and some of the pews under the gallery were made out of pews from the old meeting house.

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The new Chapel was opened on 30th October 1829 (having taken only 6 months to complete) at 2.00pm, by the Rev. Daniel Isaacs, whose text was 1 Timothy, ch. 2 verses 5 and 6:

"For there is one God and one Mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all to testify in due time".

There was an evening service conducted by the Rev. Isaacs, when his texts were from Romans, ch. 1 verse 16:

"For am I not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth".

On the following Sunday, 1st November, the preacher was Mr. William Dawson of Barnbow, whose morning text was 1 Chronicles ch. 29 verse 4 which referred to David's decision to build a temple to God and his people's response. He also preached at the evening service.

The Sunday School

Although it has not been possible to find any details of a Wesleyan Sunday School prior to 1833, it is recorded that during a sermon preached in the original Chapel in Fox Yard, in the year 1809, mention was made twice to a Sunday School, so it would appear that some work was being done among the children of the town at a very early date.

This early school, however, must have lapsed, because Mr. John Thompson started a Sunday school in his own house, in the High Street, Wetherby on Sunday 23rd August 1833. It is not clear which the property was, but it is possible that it was the shop now occupied by the china and glass business.

It is reported that 7 scholars attended on the first Sunday and 11 came the following week. Membership must have increased, because at a later date the Sunday school was held on the Church premises, and still later in the day school. It is also reported that at one time as many as 230 children regularly attended the Sunday School and this seems a remarkably large number considering that the population of the town would be something less than 2,000, on the other hand it was a time of large families.

Mr. Thompson continued to act as Superintendent for 43 years and on his retirement he was presented with a hymn book, and an illuminated address. As a matter of interest Mr. Thompson was succeeded by Mr. S. Slater-Whitfield who served in this capacity for 56 years, so the two gentlemen served an aggregate of 99 consecutive years - a record not easily beaten and possibly never will be.

The Sunday school met at 9:30am and again at 2:00pm every Sunday. The morning session was usually in the form of a bible study, and then the children would proceed into Chapel for the morning service. After many years, they were permitted to leave just before the sermon, which was of great relief for many of the congregation. The children sat in the gallery during their stay at the service, and when they were permitted to leave, the noise they made running downstairs had to be heard to be believed!

There was an intermediate section, for children up to the age of about 14 or 15, when they moved into the young men's and the young ladies classes.

The big event of the year in the life of the Sunday school was the Anniversary, held for more than 100 years every Whit Sunday.

On the first Sunday evening after Easter a Committee, which included the organist, choirmaster, Sunday School Superintendent and Secretary, would meet, usually in the home of Mr. & Mrs. Percy Hall. Prior to that meeting, members would have obtained from many different sources suitable hymns and songs - frequently from Sheffield where the late Sir Henry Coward used to lead and conduct vast gatherings of Sunday Schools from the whole of the Sheffield area in special musical offerings.

Mr. Wiggins and subsequent organists would play through the tunes, and the Committee would sift through what they thought was suitable to the Wetherby School, and in the end would make a final selection. Many lovely and special tunes and hymns were learnt and sung over the years.

It was an unwritten rule that the first hymn on the sheet should be a well known one, so that the members of the congregation who had not learnt the new hymns would at least have a good sing in one hymn.

On the Monday following the Committee meeting, the Secretary would send off for sufficient copies of the music chosen, see the printers and arrange for hymn sheets to be produced and trust that all would be completed and to hand four Sundays prior to the Anniversary. Then for four Sundays and four week night's rehearsals would be held, when the new hymns and anthems would be learnt.

This was not all, however, for the children then had to learn their poetry, playlets, or solos for performing at the Anniversary services, so during the 4 weeks period there was very little or no spare time for anyone involved.

Then came the great day. At 9:30am the scholars and choir would meet in the Chapel and would set off to sing at a number of suitable spots round the town, advertising the fact of the Anniversary, and inviting folk to come to the services. There was then a morning service at 10:30am, during which the special preacher would speak and the anthem would be sung, but there would not be much participation by the scholars.

At 2pm however things were very different, the whole service was taken by the children and choir, with the special preacher being expected to give a short address and act as Chairman. This was the day when all taking part would come dressed in their brand new clothes and if it happened to be a warm sunny day, the lady choir members made quite a fashion parade with their new outfits.

The Anniversary continued into the Whit Monday gathering tables for a feast. Decorated cars would travel around Wetherby in procession carrying the Children, whilst the choir, scholars and friends wound its way around the town in procession on foot.

During the 1920s racing began to be held every Whit Monday, and naturally the traffic both by car and foot increased very considerably, to such an extent that it was felt it was no longer safe to hold a procession and reluctantly it was dropped and the day started with the feast and then followed by games and sports.

Wesleyan Day School

On the 6th May 1844 a committee was appointed to take steps to establish a Wesleyan Day School in Wetherby. The school was duly formed and first opened in August of the same year in a room behind the Chapel then known as "The Preachers Vestry".

In 1849 a new large room was built to accommodate the growing number of children and the cost of providing the room was defrayed by public subscription.

In 1878 a new infant room was erected at a cost of £120 also paid for by subscription. Then in 1889 the infant room was enlarged at a cost of £25. The school did a great deal to establish and strengthen the position of Methodism in Wetherby.

In 1900 the Board of Education was not satisfied with the standard of the school buildings, nor of the necessary facilities and if work were not satisfactorily completed by a certain day, the school would be taken over by the County Council.

A scheme was, therefore, prepared and work was commenced almost immediately and before the specified date for the proposed takeover the following works had been completed at a cost of approximately £400:

1. A new infant class room
2. Out offices (toilets) with proper sanitary appliances, necessitating drainage and water supply.
3. Provision of a new playground for boys.
4. Entire school premises were overhauled and redecorated.

The new classrooms were able to accommodate 70 scholars and could be divided into two by a partition, which would slide to one side, or could make one large room. The toilets were fitted with the latest appliances and the Medical Officer of Health reported that they were the best in any school in the district.

The school continued as a Wesleyan school until 1916 when the new Council School was opened in Crossley Street, when the children were transfered from the Wesleyan School to the new Council School.

The premises at the chapel remained pretty well unchanged from 1916 until the 1970s when the present premises were erected.

Improvement works 1866

Considerable works of improvement and repair were carried out to the chapel premises in 1866. These comprised the formation of a vestry, 21ft. by 11ft. occupying the previously open space between the Chapel and the school buildings. Over it an orchestra was constructed to which the organ was removed and a pew was formed in front affording seats for a choir of ten.

Under part of the new vestry a cellar was excavated in which was placed a "Longbotton coil hot water apparatus" to warm the vestry and Chapel.

The entire ground floor of the chapel with the exception of two pews was renewed and a "handsome pulpit" with side wings extending to the ends of the Communion Rail was introduced. All the interior woodwork was painted grained oak and varnished, and the walls were painted as various stones.

The front wall of the Chapel was refaced, new waterspouts were fitted and entrance doors were replaced by "more appropriate" new ones. Iron railings between "handsome stone posts" and iron gates were erected along the front of the outside of the Chapel.

Many donations towards the cost of the works were received, a bazaar was held in 1886, which raised £236. and two subsequent sales raised £10. 2s. 6d. and £3. 8s. 1d respectively. These sums, together with collections taken at the re-opening of the Chapel celebrations raised a total sum of £564. 7s. 8d.

It is remarkable that works carried out by the many different tradesmen, advertising and administration costs amounted to exactly the sum collected, namely £564. 7s. 8d. Thus the Trustees had the enormous satisfaction of knowing their considerable ambitious scheme was completed without the Church being in debt.

Special Services 1874.

In April 1874 a series of special services was held in the Chapel. The first was on Maundy Thursday, when the preacher was Miss Boileau of Harrogate. On Good Friday the service was conducted by a student from East Keswick and then on Easter Sunday and the following 5 days the preacher at each evening service was Mr Langton of Thirsk. It is obvious that this series of services took the form of a Mission to the town, but so far no subsequent report on the results of the Mission services has been found.

A quaint note at the foot of the poster advertising the services reads;

"You are respectfully and affectionately invited to attend"

Works of renovation 1891

In September 1891 it was resolved by the Trustees of the Chapel that a very considerable renovation scheme should be undertaken in the Chapel building, provided that the money could be raised in a "reasonable time". It was proposed that the following works should be carried out:

1. Reseating of the body of the Chapel with polished pitch pine seats
2. Erection of a polished pine rostrum to serve as a pulpit and platform for lectures and public meetings.
3. Laying an entirely new floor in the body of the Chapel.
4. Boarding the vestibule walls with pitch pine and fixing swing doors.
5. Taking out the present sun-light, and erecting Coronas instead.
6. The complete overhauling of the heating apparatus, fixing new coil boilers and carry pipes round the gallery.
7. Painting and decorating of the whole of the Chapel.

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It was estimated that the cost of the works would be about £390. Towards this sum the Ladies Sewing Meeting pledged the sum of £150, about £100 had been promised in subscriptions.

The committee appealed "with confidence to all members and friends in the town and neighbourhood to help to their utmost in bringing this work to a successful conclusion".

To help raise funds to defray the cost of the scheme, a bazaar was held in Wetherby Town Hall on Wednesday and Thursday 6th and 7th April 1892; it was formally opened by Mrs. Edward Simpson, of Boston Spa, who was supported by "Circuit Ministers and others".

Entertainments advertised included; Concerts of vocal and instrumental music, Romberg's Celebrated Toy Symphony (band of 25 performers) and children's entertainments etc. There were 8 stalls and the details advertised in the handbills, were as follows:

The total cost of the works on completion was £426. By the time the Bazaar was held £276 had been received, leaving £150 to be raised.

New Organ

A new organ, which cost £230, built by Peter Conacher and Co., of Huddersfield, was installed and this replaced an organ, also built by Conacher's, but purchased second hand 25 years before.

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For those interested in organ detail the following was the specification:

Two pews were placed immediately in front of the organ for the choir - treble and altoes in front, and tenors and basses in the back pew.

There was an official opening of the new organ, by the Rev. J. Wardle-Stafford, who preached, in the afternoon, on "Life - its illusions, tests and compensations" and his text was 16th Chapter of Exodus, verses 23, 24, 25.

Tea was served, and this was followed by an organ recital given by Mr. Steven Wiggins, the Chapel organist. Then a further service took place in the evening when the Rev. Wardle -Stratford lectured on "John Bunyan". The Chairman was Mr. James Hudson and the Choir sang Beethoven's "Hallelujah".

To help pay for the organ yet another bazaar was held in the town hall on the 27th. 28th. and 29th June 1894, when the sum of £200 clear of expenses was raised.

The organ bellows were first blown by an electric motor during the Centenary celebrations in 1929. Previously they were blown by means of a pump handle, by an organ blower who stood on the choir landing at the top of the choir steps. The last regular blower was Mr. John Blades.

Since then the organ has undergone a major over haul in 1995 costing over £11,000, monies being raised by many social events, bazaars, jumble sales etc., all led by Mr. Peter Jameson one of the Church Stewards at that time.

1970s Modernisation Scheme

During the late 1970s there was a general feeling that the church ought to be modernised and the buildings brought up to a standard fit for the late 20th century. Wetherby was growing apace, new people were coming in, and it was felt that we ought to be able to welcome them in premises of which we could be proud.

First of all it was thought that if we could sell the existing buildings, chapel and all, it might be possible to build modern premises on an alternative site. The post office expressed an interest, but when it came down to discussing terms, no common ground could be found.

Then it was suggested that the Chapel itself should be demolished and replaced by a new up-to-date Church, on the same site. This idea received a modicum of support until an architect from York, who recently had been commissioned by the Methodist Church to refurbish and restore Wesley's Chapel in London, came to inspect our premises and what he had to report pleased some of us greatly. He told us, in no uncertain terms, that under no circumstances should we touch the Chapel, except for repair and redecoration, as it was "a gem of its period" and it would almost be sacrilege to knock it down. He suggested, however, that the existing schoolrooms should be demolished and replaced by new buildings. The schools had been built piecemeal over many years, were out of date, uneconomic to maintain and would cost more to repair than they were worth.

After careful consideration his suggestions were adopted and from then on it was "all hands to the plough". Schemes were submitted for consideration, estimates were obtained for the works, tenders were invited and in time all was set to proceed.

Because of the vagaries of V.A.T it was agreed that the east wall of the schoolroom and the north wall should be retained, but all other walls, external and internal should be new ones.

A sum of approximately £100,000 was found to be necessary to carry out the scheme, even though all the electric wiring, the re-wiring of the Chapel, alterations to the cellar under the Choir and vestry and many other ancillary works, were carried out by both men and women of the church without payment. It was hard work but everyone had fun and the fellowship of the Church was strengthened beyond measure.

A grant from the Chapel Department of the Methodist church was applied for and was granted, as was a substantial grant from the Joseph Rank Trust, a charitable trust founded mainly for the support of the British Methodist Church, established by the late Joseph Rank, and increased and further endowed by his son the late Lord Rank, the miller and film magnet, owner of the Rank films and cinemas. The Chapel Department also advanced certain sums on loan, which was a great help and enabled work to proceed without interruption. We were delighted to have granted a sum of £23,000.

Many events were held to raise the rest of the monies required, galas, bazaars, coffee mornings, flee markets, stall of all types, fashion shows, music evenings, jumble sales, flower festivals, anything which gave value and raised money.

After many months of hard toil the work was complete, at least to a condition that permitted use, so arrangements were made for an official opening ceremony to be held on Saturday 4th October 1980 at 3pm.

The great day came. The Centre as it was called was opened, free of debt, although not all the decorative work had been completed, more monies being required, but all rooms useable.

Mr. Graham Tempest, of Tempest Construction, who carried out the main contract work, handed over the keys of the buildings, which had been designed by architects William J. Lawson, to the Church.

There was a brief service of thanks giving outside of the building, and then the keys were passed to Mrs. Betty Wilson, an ex- senior Steward, Secretary of the Modernisation Committee, and an indefatigable worker for the church, who with a few appropriate remarks duly opened the Centre.

In the evening tea was served followed by an "extravaganza extraordinaire" of musical entertainment.

Since the official opening, new seating has been purchased, the choir vestry carpeted, a toilet for the disabled has been constructed and other works have been completed as required, including the complete re-wiring of the Chapel, redecoration and carpeting of the aisles.

The Centre, since its completion has been extensively used for church activities and also has become an asset to the town of Wetherby because of its central position, commodious premises and its adaptability for many and varied functions.

The above history of Wetherby Methodist Church has been extracted from documents supplied by Mr. Bob Hall who has lived in Wetherby all of his 90+ years, in all this time attending and serving in the Methodist Church at Wetherby. Bob and his fathers before him having spent a great deal of time and effort lovingly saving vast amounts of Wetherby memories and tit-bits of an age gone by.