Nonconformist Chapels in East Lindsey

Summary

A survey of nonconformist chapels in East Lindsey was carried out from May to September 2013. The initial stage of this survey comprised a desk‐based assessment of documentary sources pertaining to nonconformist chapels, such as Ordnance Survey maps, censuses, secondary sources and other modern surveys of surviving nonconformist chapels. Using these sources it was possible to establish which chapels were still extant and which were not. The extant chapels were then visited and their construction materials, architectural features and present condition were assessed and recorded on a standardised form. This information was then collated in a database.

The overwhelming majority of the chapels (92%) were used by the various Methodist groups that were active in the county. Of these groups the Wesleyan Methodists are the most widespread, with 112 chapels. Other Methodist groups built 68 of the surviving chapels, with only 19 buildings built by Baptists and other Dissenting groups.

The survey identified 318 chapels having been built in East Lindsey between the late‐17th century and the early‐20th century, far more than any other district of Lincolnshire. Of these chapels 198 survive, again a far greater number than anywhere else in the county. 47 (24%) of the surviving chapels are still in use as places of worship, whereas 90 (45.5%) have been converted for residential use. Of the erest of th buildings 30 (15%) are disused and the rest are engaged in a variety of commercial and public functions.

All of the surviving chapels are constructed from brick, and three‐quarters have gabled roofs. Slate roof coverings are common, as are gault brick dressings. Raised gables and dentil coursese ar two of the most widespread decorative features. While none of the surviving chapels in East Lindsey are constructed of stone it is widely used as a dressing material.

Building styles are largely plain and vernacular until the mid‐19th century, when decoration and architect‐designed chapels become more and more common, beginning with a number of Classically‐influenced designs before a fashion for Gothic chapels became established in the late‐19th and early‐20th centuries.

Introduction

This survey was carried out as part of a continuing effort to record and evaluate the levels of preservation and the respective conditions of nonconformist places of worship in the county of Lincolnshire. As has been emphasised in the reports derived from the previous surveys, understanding nonconformist groups and their places of worship is important to understanding the religious and social history of the county as a whole as they are a key part of the historic environment of its landscape, settlements and communities.

East Lindsey District lies in the north‐east of Lincolnshire, and is the largest district in the county, as well as the fifth largest in the country. It borders North East Lincolnshire and the River Humber to the north, with the North Sea to the east and Boston Borough to the south. To the west it borders West Lindsey and North Kesteven. The major towns of the district are Louth, Horncastle, Spilsby, Skegness, Alford and Mablethorpe The county is predominantly rural, and is divided diagonally east‐west by the Lincolnshire Wolds, a range of hills that runs through the district, roughly from Caistor to Spilsby. To the west, around Horncastle, is the clay vale, and to the south of Horncastle and Spilsby are the fens, reclaimed from the sea in the 18th and 19th centuries. The land to the east of the Wolds is dominated by the vast, flat expanse of the Lincolnshire Marsh, a reclaimed salt marsh which runs roughly from the Humber down to the Skegness. The district is relatively sparsely populated, and settlements, particularly in the east and south, can be quite remote. The economy is dominated by agriculture and, on the coast, tourism.

The growth of nonconformity in East Lindsey was heavily influenced by the level of control that landlords could maintain over their tenants. In the west of the district, beyond the Wolds, we see fewer numbers of nonconformist places of worship than we do on the other side of the Wolds, in the east and south. Landlord control was far weaker, and the number of freeholders far greater in these regions, which made it far easier to establish nonconformist places of worship in later years. During the period of the development of nonconformism a great deal of social and economic change was occurring, no doubt exercising a not inconsiderable level of influence over the spread and development of nonconformism in the district.

Methodology

The data was then input into the Historic Buildings, Sites and Monuments Record (HBSMR). Buildings that, in the desk‐based part of the survey, were identified as no longer being extant were also recorded and inputted into HBSMR. Any chapels that were demolished to make way for a new chapel on the same site were included in the record for the succeeding chapel.

There were 244 chapels identified from the OS County Series Maps, dating from 1887 to 1937. Of these buildings 16 were identified from the 1887‐91 maps, 241 from the 1905‐7 maps, and one from the 1937 maps. Other sources revealed the existence of another 72 chapels that either fell out of usage as a chapel, or had not yet been built at the times that the Ordnance Survey maps were being produced. Of the 316 total nonconformist chapels that are known to have existed in East Lindsey at one time or another 198 are still extant.

This report is formatted in a similar way to the previous reports to facilitate comparison of data.

Denomination

Dissenting Groups

Dissenter groups were already well established in East Lindsey by the time of the Declaration of Indulgence in 1672. There were at least 10 established nonconformist churches or ministers at this time: five Independent or Congregational, three Presbyterian and two Baptist (Ambler, 2000, p.17, Fig. 2). All of these groups were located in the east and south of the district; more rural areas where landlords control were weakest.

Quakers were also present in the district, with twelve locations being used for Friends' meetings by the 18th‐century (Ambler, 2000, p.31, Fig. 5). Again the Quakers seem to have been strongest in the east and south of the district, particularly in the south around Wainfleet, which, tellingly, is the location of the only extant Quaker chapel (Fig. 4; survey number 47106) in the district.

The oldest extant chapel in the district is a former Baptist chapel. Dating from 1690 the chapel at Maltby‐le‐Marsh (Fig. 5; survey number 41461) was the first of at least 13 chapels that the Baptists were to build. Nine of them still stand, including the remarkably well preserved chapel at Monksthorpe (built 1701, Figs. 6, 7, 8 & 9; survey number 42235), complete with external baptistery. Baptists seem to be the most conspicuous Dissenter group in the district at this time, and, as shown by a spate of excommunications of Baptists in Croft and Burgh‐le‐Marsh in the 1660s, and another series of excommunications in Donington‐on‐Bain during the 1670s, Baptists were certainly prominent enough to invoke the ire of the Church (Ambler, 2000, p.21). Certainly in the 18th century the Baptists became the most widespread Dissenter group in the district, flourishing in the fens of the East and South (Ambler, 2000, p.87, Fig. 13).

Presbyterianism never took hold in East Lindseye in th same way that other Dissenting groups did. There were three Presbyterian congregations in East Lindsey in 1672, and there were still only three in the 18th century. The only surviving Presbyterian chapel is a modest building of 1821 in Woodhall Spa (Fig. 14; survey number 48209). Likewise, Independent congregations were never able to gain a significant foothold in the district. Both of these groups were more closely associated with towns than the Baptists (Ambler in Bennett, 2001, p.74‐5). Indeed the five surviving Congregationalist chapels are located in towns.

Other dissenting groups were represented, although in very small numbers. There was a Pentecostalist chapel in Louth (survey number 47187), now demolished, and a former Salvation Army chapel survives in Wainfleet All Saints (Fig. 10; survey number 48311). In Horncastle there was a chapel formerly belonging to the Swedenborgians (Fig. 11; survey number 48817), a mystical movement established in the 1740s by a self‐styled prophet from Sweden, Emanuel Swedenborg.

Methodism

From the late‐18th century, though, Nonconformism in East Lindsey was, as in the rest of the county, dominated by Methodism. Of the extant chapels in East Lindsey 92% are of Methodist origin and at its peak in the 1860s 8% of the county's population were members of one Methodist group or another. Indeed, until 1860 the number of Methodists in Lincolnshire grew at a greater rate than the county's population (Ambler, 2000, p.133).

John Wesley was known to have visited Lincolnshire on numerous occasions, and in 1779 he even opened the earliest surviving Methodist chapel in East Lindsey District: Wesley's Chapel, at Raithby Hall (Fig. 12; survey number 47450). This particular chapel became a stronghold of early Methodism in the district, helped greatly by its wealthy patron, Robert Carr Brackenbury. At the time of Wesley's death in 1791, there was a Methodist presence in a third of Lincolnshire's parishes.

The first Methodist circuits based solely in East Lindsey were founded in Horncastle and Louth in 1801, and were followed by others in Spilsby (1802) and Alford (1813). Wesleyan Methodism never lost its place as the preeminent branch of Methodism in the district: 57% of extant chapels in the district are Wesleyan.

However, other Wesleyan groups did thrive in the district. Primitive Methodism was present by the 1820s, and the first circuit was founded in Louth in 1822, although the group struggled at first. There is only one extant former Primitive Methodist chapel from the early‐19th century, at Alford (Fig. 13; survey number 49009), and there are records for only one non‐extant chapel, at Horncastle (survey number 49028). However by the 1840s there were eight circuits in the county, and there were 20 by the 1950s.

The United Methodist Free Church grew in a. similar way The various Wesleyan Reform groups that went on to become the United Methodist Free Church never really took hold in the district, or the county. The Wesleyan Association had circuits at Louth and Alford in 1836, but they never had more than five places of worship in the county, the only surviving one in East Lindsey being on Walkergate in Louth (Fig. 15; survey number 48833). From the 1850s, however, the movement gained momentum, and in 1859 the first Free Methodist circuit was founded in Louth, followed by one in Alford in 1861. However, the movement was never as strong as the Primitive Methodists', and they only ever managed to build 40% of the non‐Wesleyan Methodist chapels in the district. Tellingly a distribution map of extant nonconformist chapels shows that the vast majority of the extant Free Methodist chapels are located in the north‐east of the district, around Louth, where the earliest Methodist Reformist circuit had been founded (see Fig. 1).

Between 1850 and 1854 there was a 30% drop in the numbers of Wesleyan Methodists in the county, although the overall number of Methodists was on the rise (Ambler, 2000, p.133). This can be attributed to the popularity of Primitive and Free Methodism, but the effect was only temporary. Of 68 extant Primitive and Free Methodist chapels 50 (74%) were built between 1830 and 1870, and they account for 49% of all Methodist chapels built in the period. In the late‐19th‐ and early‐20th century Wesleyan chapels again become dominant, comprising 73% of all Methodist chapels built after 1870.

Thus the multiple divisions of Methodism were, in some respects, in competition with one another, and many settlements had one or more Methodist chapel. In one case, though, pragmatism won through. In 1904 both the former Wesleyan Methodist chapel at Conisholme (Fig. 16; survey number 48762) and the (now demolished) Free Methodist chapel at Saltfleet (survey number 48972) closed. Both groups had had a chapel in each settlement, and they came to an agreement to close one each, presumably saving money and avoiding potential conflict. Methodist chapels even occasionally changed denomination. The Wesleyan Methodists built a (now demolished) chapel in Muckton Bottom (survey number 48954) in 1848 which was sold to the United Methodist Free Church for £33 in 1872, and in 1848 the Wesleyan Association chapel in Louth – mentioned above – was sold not to another group of Methodists, but to the Baptists.

The overall distribution of Methodist denominations is comparable to the other districts of Lincolnshire. The number of surviving Wesleyan Methodist chapels as a percentage of the total number of surviving chapels is 57% in East Lindsey, compared with 49% in West Lindsey, 55% in North Kesteven and 53% in Boston Borough. Likewise the figures for Primitive Methodist chapels are 23% in East Lindsey and 28% in West Lindsey, 20% in North Kesteven and 18% in Boston Borough. South Holland, however, has much lower figures of surviving Methodist chapels, 24% of extant chapels are Wesleyan, and 21% are Primitive. However 17% of surviving chapels are Baptist, compared to only 9% in East Lindsey and 4% in North Kesteven – a testament to the continuing strength of Baptists in the south of the county.

Denomination Total Wesleyan 112 (57%) Primitive 45 (23%) Free 21 (11%) Wesleyan Association 1 (0.5%) Salvation Army 1 (0.5%) General Baptist 9 (4.5%) Particular Baptist 2 (1%) Congregational 5 (2.5%) Friends 1 (0.5%) Presbyterian 1 (0.5%) Swedenborgian 1 (0.5%) Denomination of surviving chapels

Survival

Of the chapels in East Lindsey 112 (57%) survive with their historic fabric intact, significantly more than North Kesteven and West Lindsey (both 40%) and South Holland (34%). 64 chapels (32%) have high levels of intact historic fabric and 22 (11%) have only minor or minimal levels of their historic fabric intact. 38% of chapels survive with their original windows, a similar number to North Kesteven's 34% and West Lindsey's 31%. The figures for minor or minimal window survival are also similar, with 18% for East Lindsey and 19% for North Kesteven. 20% of East Lindsey's surviving chapels have entirely new fenestration.

Along with windows roofs are one of the most likely features to be altered or replaced. In East Lindsey 15% of chapels have had their roofs altered or replaced, somewhat less than the 19% in North Kesteven and the 27% in West Lindsey.

Most chapels are altered when they are converted for a different use. For example use as a garage or a warehouse often necessitates the insertion of a large door, such as with the former Wesleyan Association chapel in Louth (Fig. 15; survey number 48833), and conversion to a dwelling may require new windows such as in the former Primitive Methodist chapel in Sutton‐on‐Sea (Fig. 17; survey number 48837). This building is also rendered, a technique often used to hide the tell‐tale signs of alteration to brickwork. Dormer windows are often installed during the conversion of single‐ storey chapels, such as in the former Wesleyan Methodist chapels at Minting (Fig. 18; survey number 48850) and Orby (Fig. 19; survey number 48861), both of which are particularly unsympathetic conversions. However many chapels, such as the former Wesleyan chapels at Manby (Fig. 20; survey number 48845) and South Willingham (Fig. 21; survey number 48478), are carefully converted.

Only 9 (4%) extant chapels in East Lindsey lie outside the focus of a settlement, all of them Methodist. The proportion is the same in North Kesteven, but somewhat higher in South Holland (7%) and Boston Borough (14%). Most of the surviving chapels are situated in the east and south of the district, although they are also well‐represented in the west. Only in the Wolds is there a significant paucity of chapels, unsurprising when considering how sparsely populated the area is.

One chapel actually moved. In 1846 Louth's Riverhead Wesleyan Methodist chapel (survey numbers 48896 & 48897) was dismantled and moved ten miles to Theddlethorpe All Saints. The chapel has now been demolished, but a photograph of the building survives (Leary, 1988, p.76) and shows it to be a relatively large brick building rather than a wooden or iron structure. As such dismantling and moving the building brick‐by‐brick must have involved considerable effort. No sources explain why this took place.

Survival of Historic Fabric Denomination Complete Major Part Minor Part Minimal Unknown Wesleyan 65 32 11 3 1 Primitive 23 20 2 1 Free 13 6 1 1 Wesleyan 1 Association Salvation Army 1 General Baptist 6 2 1 Particular 2 Baptist Congregational 2 3 Friends 1 Presbyterian 1 Swedenborgian 1 Levels of survival of historic fabric for extant chapels by denomination

Present Use

Of the 198 extant chapels in East Lindsey 47, or 24%, are still in use as places of worship, a figure slightly lower than the 29% in West Lindsey and North Kesteven and the 27% in Boston Borough, and much lower than the 41% in South Holland. However, the large amount of chapels in East Lindsey means that the 47 still in use is almost double that of the 24 still in use in South Holland. Most of the buildings still in use as places of worship are located in the east and south of the district. Of the remaining buildings the vast majority have been converted for residential use, with 87 houses and three blocks of flats making up 45.5% of the extant chapels in the district. This figure for North Kesteven is similar (49%), but is lower in Boston Borough and South Holland (35% and 24% respectively). There are 30 disused chapels in the district, comprising 15% of the total number, a figure that is again similar to Boston Borough and South Holland (16% each). The rest of the buildings are engaged in a variety of commercial and public functions.

Present Use Total House 87 (44%) Chapel 47 (24%) Disused 30 (15%) Warehouse 9 (4.5%) Shop 6 (3%) Village Hall 4 (2%) Flats 3 (1.5%) Garage 3 (1.5%) Office 2 (1%) Workshop 2 (1%) Cinema 1 (0.5%) Funeral Director 1 (0.5%) Masonic Hall 1 (0.5%) Recording Studio 1 (0.5%) School 1 (0.5%) Present use of extant chapels

Date

Over 107 – more than half ‐ of the extant chapels in East Lindsey date from the mid‐19th century, with the early‐ and late‐19th century accounting for another 10% and 23% respectively. Another 9% were built in the early‐20th‐century and 1.5% are of indeterminate date. This leaves only 6 (3%) surviving chapels that were built prior to 1800. Altogether 173 (87%) of chapels date from the 19th century, a number which is somewhat higher than North Kesteven's 74% and South Holland's 68%. Both of these districts have a greater number of buildings from the early‐20th‐century, 16% for North Kesteven and 24% for South Holland.

Of the chapels built prior to 1800 three are Baptist, one is Congregational, one is a Friends' Meeting House and one is Wesleyan. The sole chapel dating from the 17th century is a Baptist chapel at Maltby‐le‐Marsh (Fig. 5; survey number 41461), built in 1690, although a great deal of its surviving fabric is from the late‐18th century. The other Baptist chapels from the 18th century are the former Particular Baptist chapel at Horncastle (Fig. 21; survey number 47928), which dates from 1767, and the General Baptist chapel at Monksthorpe (Figs. 6, 7, 8 & 9; survey number 42235), dating from 1701. This building is particularly noteworthy due to its well‐preserved cottage and stables, and particularly for its exterior baptistery (Fig. 8; survey number 42235). The chapel was associated with a congregation at Burgh‐le‐Marsh, active from the late‐17th century, and its location at the relatively remote hamlet of Monksthorpe is thought to be a deliberate attempt to avoid the persecution that nonconformist groups suffered in the larger settlements during the first few decades after the Toleration Act (Ambler, 2000, p.89).

The Wesleyan chapel at Raithby Hall (Fig. 12; survey number 47450), dating from 1779 and opened by John Wesley himself, is the earliest Wesleyan chapel in the district, and one ofe th earliest in the county. The only other Methodist chapel built prior to 1800 in the district is the now‐demolished Wesleyan chapel at Revesby (survey number 48967).

Methodist chapels dominate the 19th century, totalling 147 of the 154 surviving buildings from the period. Of the non‐Methodist chapels built in the period four are from the early‐19th‐century. The explosion of chapel building in the mid‐19th century shows an increasing trend towards the Primitive and Free denominations; whereas the chapels of these two groups make up only 38% of the total number of extant Methodist chapels in the district they comprise 49% of the Methodist chapels built in the mid‐19th‐century. Many of these chapels are found in the more rural areas to the east and south of the district.

This trend does not continue into the late‐19th and early‐20th century, where Wesleyan chapels make up 44 of the 60 Methodist chapels built in the period. Indeed after 1899 there are no Free or United chapels built at all, and only four Primitive chapels. Many of the Wesleyan chapels built in this period are replacements for smaller chapels, suggesting expanding congregations and increasing wealth.

Period Total Late‐17th Century 1 (0.5%) Early‐18th Century 1 (0.5%) Late‐18th Century 4 (2%) Early‐19th Century 19 (10%) Mid‐19th Century 107 (54%) Late‐19th Century 46 (23%) Early‐20th Century 17 (9%) Unknown 3 (1.5%) Age of extant chapels

Materials and Construction

Surviving chapels in East Lindsey are built exclusively out of brick. Of the 198 chapels 193 are brick and the remaining five are so heavily rendered that it is difficult to be certain what they are built from, though there is a reasonable chance that they are brick too. The vast majority of the chapels are built from red brick, 148 compared to 21 built from gault brick, 18 which are rendered and one which is built from a combination of red and gault brick. Although there are no stone chapels in East Lindsey it is widely used as a dressing material, as is gault brick.

The lack of stone chapels may not only be due to East Lindsey's distance from the Lincolnshire limestone belt but also because of the poorer, more rural nature of the district, as well as the trend toward austerity in some of the Methodist Reform groups; many Primitive and Free chapels of the mid‐19th century are small and have little decoration. There are no surviving iron chapels in East Lindsey, although the original Particular Baptist chapel in Skegness (survey number 48870) was a prefabricated iron building that was demolished in 1911 to make way for a more permanent replacement.

Number of Chapels with String Courses by Period Early‐ Early‐ Late‐18th Mid‐19th Late‐19th 19th 20th Unknown Century Century Century Century Century 2 (50%) 2 (11%) 16 (15%) 20 (43%) 7 (41%) 1 (33%) Extant chapels with string‐courses by period (percentages are of the total number of chapels from that period)

48 (24%) of the surviving buildings have string courses, a slightly lower figure than in Boston Borough (33%), North Kesteven (36%) and South Holland (31%).

Roof Shape

Gabled roofs make up 74% of the roof shapes of surviving chapels in East Lindsey. This is consistent with the county's other districts: 76% for South Holland, 73% for Boston Borough, 84% for West Lindsey and 78% for North Kesteven. The majority of the hipped‐roof buildings (36 of 44) were built in the mid‐19th century.

Roof Shape Total Gabled 147 (74%) Hipped 44 (22%) Pyramidal 3 (1.5%) Flat 2 (1%) Hipped and Gabled 1 (0.5%) Unknown 1 (0.5%) Extant chapels by roof shape

Roof Covering

Welsh slate is used on 40% of the surviving chapels' roofs, in contrast to 46% for slate, pantile and plain tile combined. The remaining buildings have had their roofs replaced with various types of modern tile or other materials. The number of slate roofs (54%) is comparable to North Kesteven where the number is around half, and somewhat more than West Lindsey, where 44% of surviving roofs are slate. The figure is much higher in South Holland, though, where 71% of roofs are slate. Compared to the other districts the number of original roofs (86%) is high: only South Holland (around 75%) and North Kesteven (around 80%) have comparable levels of roof survival.

Roof Covering Total Welsh Slate 80 (40%) Slate 27 (14%) Pantile 38 (20%) Plain Tile 24 (12%) Unknown 4 (2%) Modern 25 (13%) Extant chapels by roof covering

Windows and Doors

Similar to South Holland, Boston Borough and West Lindsey, around a third of buildings retain their original door. This contrasts with North Kesteven where just under half of surviving buildings have retained their door.

Window style is an important part of a building's character, and can be indicative of architectural trends. In the early‐ and mid‐19th century flat‐, segmental‐ and round‐headed windows were the most common, with round headed being somewhat more common than the other two styles. We see a marked increase in the proportion of chapels built with pointed arches in the late‐19th and early‐20th century, perhaps suggestive of the increasing number of more elaborate Gothic‐influenced chapels. Many chapels have combinations of different window style, with perhaps a large, decorative round‐ or pointed‐headed window on the front elevation and less ornate segmental‐ or flat‐headed windows on the sides and rear.

Unknown Flat‐ Segmental‐ Round‐ Pointed Four‐ Pointed or Headed Headed Headed Segmental Centred Removed Late‐17th‐ 1 Century Early‐18th‐ 1 Century Late‐18th‐ 2 2 Century Early‐19th‐ 1 5 7 1 6 Century Mid‐19th‐ 22 26 39 9 2 15 Century Late‐19th‐ 1 6 11 24 2 1 4 Century Early‐20th‐ 2 1 2 12 Century Unknown 1 2 Window style of extant chapels by period (some chapels have more than one style of window)

Style and Decoration

As with the other districts of Lincolnshire chapels in East Lindsey come in a variety of styles. There are modest vernacular chapels with little or no decoration as well as large, architect‐designed chapels with many decorative features. Often date, denomination and finances dictated the size and character of an individual building; it is unsurprising that many of the small, mid‐19th‐century Primitive chapels in the east of the district are relatively plain, whereas later chapels in the towns and villages exhibit much greater size and levels of decoration.

The 17th‐ and 18th‐century buildings are relatively plain, but only one – the aforementioned Baptist chapel at Maltby‐le‐Marsh – is without any decorative elements whatsoever; most contain at least one or two decorative features. The Baptist chapel at Monksthorpe, for example, has only a plinth, and the Quaker chapel in Wainfleet All Saints (Fig. 4; survey number 47106) has tumbled brickwork on the gable (the earliest example of this feature in the district). The most elaborate building from this period is the former Particular Baptist chapel at Cagthorpe in Horncastle (Fig. 21; survey number 47928) which has gentle Classical styling. It features rusticated ashlar quoins and keystones, and a stone string course and cornice that give the impression of a pediment. The doorframe is reminiscent of Classical mouldings.

Most of the surviving buildings exhibit some decorative features. There are 24 buildings with raised gables, and 53 (27.5%) exhibit dentil courses) Only 30 (15%) of the surviving buildings are completely plain. Apart from the Baptist chapel at Maltby‐le‐Marsh all of these buildings date from the early‐ and mid‐19th century. They mostly have gabled roofs, with a smattering of hipped‐roofed examples, and they are often in the smaller, more isolated settlements in the east and south of the district.

The former Primitive Methodist chapel at Fulstow (Fig. 22; survey number 48780) is a good example of this etype. Th building dates from 1831, is of red brick and has a gabled roof of slate. The doorway is to the side elevation and has a broad three‐bay front of round‐headed windows with stone cills. Although there is now an extension to the rear (built 1886) and some new windows with margin lights to the side elevation there is no original decoration other than a tablet above the door. Another good example is the Wesleyan chapel at Bilsby (Fig. 23; survey number 48748), again a red‐ brick slate‐roofed building, although this time with a hipped roof. It was built only a few years after the chapel at Fulstow, and is of a similar size. The only decorative feature it exhibits is a dentil course under the eaves.

A similar building is the Wesleyan chapel at Authorpe (Fig. 24; survey number 48743), built in 1862 from red brick and with a hipped, slate roof. However it is not quite as plain as the chapels at Fulstow and BIlsby, boasting a porch, stone arches and a modest cornice. Also from the 1860s is the Primitive chapel at Toynton St Peter (Fig. 25; survey number 48899), which has a three‐bay front with round‐headed stone window arches, a stone lintel over the door, decorative barge boards and a small finial. It is not unknown, however for some of these understated chapels to be relatively large. The Wesleyan Methodist chapels at Aswardby and Friskney Eaudike (Fig. 26; survey number 48742 and Fig. 27; survey number 47993), both two‐storey buildings with hipped, slate roofs, are significantly larger than most chapels found in small settlements. They are both also very basic, with only the Friskney chapel displaying any decorative elements in the minor Classical styling of its projecting central bay, round‐headed arches and terminal pilasters. Some of the smaller chapels from this period are much more elaborate. The Primitive Methodist chapel at Tetney Lock (Fig. 28; survey number 48889), dating from 1864, features stone and polychrome brick dressings. It has a narrow three‐bay front with red and gault brick round‐headed arches. It has a very slightly raised gable with stone coping and a stone string course below, creating a pediment. There is a dentil course under the coping and a tablet to the centre of the pediment. The window arches to the side elevations are also round‐headed, but are rubbed gault brick. Polychrome dressings are rare in East Lindsey, with only seven examples across the district.

The smaller, more isolated chapels of the mid‐19th‐century seem to follow a trend of becoming more elaborate throughout the period. The rather plain chapels of the 1830s and 40s seem to give way to more ornate buildings in the 1850s and 60s, although many building were still very modest compared to their later counterparts.

In the larger settlements chapels were generally more elaborate, and in the late‐19th century the Gothic style became widespread as nonconformist groups became wealthier and congregations grew. Even in the mid‐19th century there are examples of elaborate, architect‐designed Gothic‐ influenced buildings. The former Wesleyan Methodist chapel on West Street in Alford (Fig. 30; survey number 45954) was built in 1864 by W Botterill of Hull and is overtly Gothic. It features three projecting bays under three large pointed‐arched windows with geometric tracery and stone hood mouldings above. It has angled buttresses to the corners topped with octagonal pinnacles.

Other mid‐19th‐century chapels in the larger settlements follow different forms. The Wesleyan chapel on Eastgate in Louth (built 1835, Fig. 31; survey number 45622) is a broad six‐bay red‐brick building featuring a restrained Classical style, with round‐headed arches, white‐painted string courses, swags and a parapet. A similar, if less well‐preserved building, is the former Primitive Methodist chapel on South Street in Alford (Fig. 32; survey number 45897). Built of gault brick in 1836 it has a broad five‐bay front with terminal and intermediate pilasters flanking round‐headed‐ arched windows. A cornice forms a pediment with a dentil course under the eaves.

Perhaps the most impressive example of these Classically‐styled mid‐19th‐century chapels is the Baptist chapel on Eastgate in Louth .(Fig 29; survey number 45535). Built in 1854 the building has a five‐bay front with moulded stone quoins, window and door surrounds and pilasters. It has a pediment broken by a triple window with a red and gault brick arch and a stone hood moulding. To the sides there are gault brick pilasters.

All chapels built in the late‐19th and early‐20th century have some decoration. Stone dressings feature in 56% of chapels built in this period, whereas the figure is only 26% for chapels built in the mid‐19th century. Other architectural features tell a similar story, with stained glass appearing in 40% of the later chapels, compared with only 9% of the earlier buildings; and 29% of later buildings featuring tracery as opposed to only 5% of the earlier chapels. One feature that does decline in prominence, though, is pediments, with them featuring on nine building dating from the mid‐19th‐ century compared to only three from the late‐19th and early‐20th century; perhaps a side‐effect of the decline in Classically‐styled chapels in favour of Gothic styling, and mirrored in the increasing prevalence of pointed arches.

One of the best examples of this move toward the Gothic in the late‐19th century is the Wesleyan chapel on Algitha Road in Skegness (Fig. 33; survey number 48869). Built in 1881 by Charles Bell it incorporates pointed arches, decorative angled buttresses stone springer and hood mouldings and raised gables, as well as a large four‐light window with geometric tracery. Similar examples exist in the former Primitive Methodist chapel at Roman Bank in Skegness (Fig. 34; survey number 48871) and the former Wesleyan Methodist chapel on the High Street in Mablethorpe (Fig. 35; survey number 48842), which also features polychrome brick dressings.

Only two chapels in East Lindsey feature towers, both of them built in the early‐20th century. The Particular Baptist chapel on Beresford Avenue in Skegness (Fig. 36; survey number 48870, the successor to the iron chapel mentioned above) and the former Wesleyan chapel on Broadway in Woodhall Spa (Fig. 37; survey number 47245). The Particular Baptist chapel was built in 1911 by John Wills, it is Gothic with the tower positioned asymmetrically at the north‐east corner. The tower is quite ornate with angled clasping buttresses flanking two‐light windows with panel tracery, with a crenelated parapet and pinnacles on top. The Wesleyan chapel in Woodhall Spa is less ornate, but of a similar asymmetrical plan. The tower is octagonal and topped with stone crenellation and a spire.

Larger, more ostentatious chapels from the late‐19th‐ and early‐20th‐century do appear outside of the larger settlements. The former Wesleyan Methodist chapel at New York (Fig. 38; survey number 48908), for example, is a very large building for a rather small settlement and looks very much like an architect‐designed chapel (although there is no record of who the architect might have been). It is Italianate, with two‐step round‐headed window arches, finished with rubbed red brick, and rubbed gault brick above. The arches spring from a projecting stone string course and, to the frontage, feature large, decorative stone keystones. An ocular window above is similarly dressed. It has a raised gable with stone coping atop courses of decorative gault brick which are arranged in a 'trickling' pattern.

The Wesleyan chapel at Belchford (Fig. 39; survey number 48747) is not as large as its counterpart in New York but is equally decorative. Built in 1872 in a style somewhere between Italianate and Romanesque, it is a red‐brick gable‐roofed building featuring round‐headed gault brick arches with stone hood moulding and a projecting stone string course. Below there is a tall plinth of gault and red brick, and both the roof and porch roof are raised with stone coping. However the most striking feature of this chapel is the use of a stone string course to give the impression of a crow‐stepped gable with tumbled gault brick above.

An example of another style of chapel built in the early‐20th century is the Wesleyan chapel at Reeds Beck (Fig. 40; survey number 48883). Built in 1901 of red brick and with a gabled roof, this building exhibits Arts and Crafts styling on the gables with wide stone hood mouldings with decorative foliage ends, and an emblem on the top of the gable.

One chapel is perhaps the best illustration of the changing nature of the architecture of nonconformist chapels in East Lindsey. The Congregational chapel at Alford (Figs. 41, 42 & 43; survey number 45895) actually comprises two separate chapels, a plain late‐18th‐century building which abuts an elaborate chapel of 1876. Both buildings are of red brick and serve the same congregation, but that is where they diverge. The earlier building is plain with round‐headed arches, very much like many of the other chapels built between the late‐18th and early‐19th century. The 1876 chapel is Gothic, and features pointed‐arched windows with tracery and stone hood mouldings, as well as decorative buttresses and ridge tiles. It even has a modest spire. Burial Grounds

Only six of the surviving chapels in East Lindsey had associated burial grounds, as well as one non‐ extant chapel (Huttoft, survey number 48947). Only one of these buildings is a Methodist chapel, the Wesleyan Methodist chapel at Old Bolingbroke (Fig. 44; survey number 48750).

Three of the burial grounds are associated with Baptist chapels: one at Coningsby (Fig. 45; survey number 48759), one at Cagthorpe in Horncastle (Fig. 21; survey number 47928) and the other at the celebrated chapel at Monksthorpe (Fig. 9; survey number 42235). There are still headstones visible at the Horncastle and Monksthorpe burial grounds, although neither burial ground seems to be in use today.

Of the other three burial grounds, two are associated with Congregational chapels, a now disused one at Queen Street in Horncastle (Fig. 46; survey number 47736), and the aforementioned now‐ demolished chapel at Huttoft. The final burial ground is associated with the district's sole Presbyterian chapel at Woodhall Spa (Fig. 14; survey number 48209). Again none of these burial grounds appear to be in use today. It should be noted, though, that both the Monksthorpe and Woodhall Spa chapels are still in use as places of worship, and, as such, may still make use of their own cemeteries.

The number of burial grounds found in other Lincolnshire districts is similar to that of East Lindsey, although the high number of chapels in the district means that they are proportionally fewer. There are six burial grounds in Boston Borough, North Kesteven and South Holland. Like East Lindsey these burial grounds are predominantly associated with Dissenter, rather than Methodist chapels: only two – one in Boston Borough and one in South Holland – are associated with Methodist buildings.

Associated Buildings

It is not uncommon to find Sunday schools associated with nonconformist chapels. Education was a hugely important part of the various Dissenter and Methodist movements. 75 (38%) of the extant buildings had some kind of educational facility associated with them. Often this took the form of a schoolroom, often incorporated when a chapel was extended or renovated, but many others also constructed a separate building for the purpose of education.

In East Lindsey 26 (13%) of the surviving 198 chapels are known to have had separate buildings for use as Sunday schools. These were often built well after the chapel, such as the former Wesleyan Methodist chapel at East Kirkby (Fig. 47; survey number 48774), which was built in 1908, 46 years after the chapel was built. Others, like the Wesleyan chapel at Burgh‐le‐Marsh (Fig. 48; survey number 48754), had their Sunday school constructed at the same time as the chapel.

While Sunday schools are by far the most common associated building they are not the only ones. The former Wesleyan Methodist chapel at Binbrook (survey number 45868) has a reading room situated on the opposite side of the road. However the most striking example of a building (or, in this case, buildings) associated with a chapel in East Lindsey is at the Wesleyan chapel on Market Place in Spilsby (Fig. 49; survey number 47078). Here the large Gothic chapel of 1878 is flanked by identical manses, built in the same style and with the same materials as the chapel.

Conclusion

One of the most striking features about nonconformist places of worship in East Lindsey is the sheer volume of them. Of 316 identified chapels 198 are extant, considerably more than in any other district of Lincolnshire. This is somewhat surprising because although East Lindsey is the largest district in the county, historically it has been quite sparsely populated. This might be due partly to many settlements having two, or even three, Methodist chapels to cater for Wesleyan, Primitive and United Free Methodist congregations. Although Wesleyan Methodism's pre‐eminence was never really challenged Primitive and Free Methodism were strong in the east and south of the district. The Free Methodists were especially successful around Louth and the district's north‐east.

This duplication of Methodist chapels may also go some way to explaining why the percentage of extant chapels still in use as places of worship is comparatively low in the district. A greaty man chapels closed in the 1930s, when the various Methodist denominations were united, and smaller chapels simply became redundant.

Other dissenter groups fared less well. Only 8% of surviving buildings are not of Methodist origin. Except for South Holland, which had a strong Baptist presence, the data is similar. Most eof th non‐ Methodist nonconformist chapels in East Lindsey were built by various Baptist denominations, although Congregational chapels are also represented. The Quakers, Swedenborgians, Presbyterians and Salvation Army have one extant chapel each. There were no records indicating the presence of any Christadelphian or Unitarian chapels, either extant or non‐extant.

As with the other districts the vast majority (96%) of the surviving buildings are located within settlements. The surviving buildings are spread across the district with the east and south having the greatest density. Only the Wolds seems to have a notable scarcity of chapels, both extant and non‐ extant. Denominationally the chapels are spread relatively evenly, although surviving non‐Methodist chapels are almost all located in larger settlements. The majority of the extant Free Methodist chapels are located around Louth, where their earliest and strongest circuit was located.

Only 24% of chapels in East Lindsey are still used as places of worship, whereas 45.5% have been converted for residential use as houses or flats. While other districts have a somewhat higher number of chapels still used for worship, the figure is not unusual. Like the other districts residential conversion is the most likely fate of an abandoned chapel, amongst a variety of other commercial and/or public uses.

Similar to the other districts surveyed, the majority (87%) of extant buildings were built in the 19th century. Of these buildings 54% were built in the mid‐19th‐century and a further 23% in the late‐ 19th‐century: only 23% of chapels date from other periods. However, other districts have a slightly higher percentage of buildings dating from the early‐20th ‐century. The oldest surviving chapel is the Baptist chapel at Maltby‐le‐Marsh which dates back to 1690, and the newest chapels date from the 1920s.

All of the surviving chapels in East Lindsey are built from brick, and of these 74% are built from red brick. The rest of the buildings are either built of gault brick, or are rendered. There are no records indicating that any of the non‐extant chapels were built from stone, but there was at least one iron chapel, the Particular Baptist chapel at Skegness. The lack of stone chapels may be due to the district being relatively far from sources of stone, as well as the poorer, more rural economy. The extent of the survival of historic fabric is relatively high: 57% of buildings boast complete survival of historic fabric; compared to 40% each for West Lindsey and North Kesteven; and 32% have high levels of survival of their historic fabric. 38% of buildings have had their windows replaced, whereas only 15% have had their roofs replaced. As in the other districts most of the chapels have gabled roofs. There are 147 gable‐roofed chapels in East Lindsey, 74% of the total, with 22% having hipped roofs. 54% of buildings have slate roof coverings.

The size, style and decoration of chapels differ considerably over time and between locations, and are heavily by financial factors. The range of different styles of building and decoration reflects that of the other areas, with many examples of both small, modest, vernacular buildings and large, elaborate architect‐designed chapels, as well as many medium‐sized buildings which, although far from plain, exhibit only moderate ornamentation.

The majority of buildings from the 18th and early‐19th centuries are small, vernacular buildings, with little or no decoration. Even the larger chapels from this period are still little more than red‐brick cuboids. Some decorative elements are present, though, with string‐courses tumbled brickwork and even, in the case of the former Particular Baptist chapel on Cagthorpe (Fig. 21; survey number 47928) in Horncastle, Classical styling.

However, all‐in‐all the majority of the surviving buildings exhibit some kind of decorative features. From the mid‐19th century ornamentation becomes the rule, rather than the exception and we begin to see raised gables, pilasters, dentil courses, and quoins becoming more and more common. Stone and gault brick are the most common dressing materials. Some chapels, such as that at Tetney Lock (Fig. 28; survey number 48889), have polychrome brick dressings. In the larger settlements architect‐ designed Classical‐influenced buildings appear with greater frequency, most notably the Baptist chapel at Eastgate in Louth (Fig. 29; survey number 45535). Round‐ and segmental‐headed arches dominate in the mid‐19th‐century, often finished in rubbed brick.

In the late ‐19th‐century chapels become much larger and elaborate, with those in the larger settlements (and often in the smaller settlements too) showing an increasing Gothic influence. All chapels built in this period exhibit some form of decoration, and string‐courses become increasingly common, with 43% and 41% of buildings featuring them in the late‐19th and early‐20th centuries respectively. 40% of buildings built after 1870 feature stained glass, compared with only 9% built before, and 29% feature tracery, compared with only 5% of earlier buildings. Tellingly, pointed‐ arched windows – a hallmark of Gothic architecture ‐ become far more widespread. The Gothic chapels at Algitha Road in Skegness (Fig. 33; survey number 48869) and at New York (Fig. 37; survey number 48908) (a very elaborate chapel for a rather small settlement) are representative of this movement.

Although the Gothic style is dominant in this period other styles were apparent: the former Wesleyan Methodist chapel at Belchford ( Fig. 39; survey number 48747) is Italianate, and the Wesleyan chapel at Reeds Beck (Fig. 40; survey number 48883) features Mock Tudor and Arts and Crafts styling. However, the Gothic remained dominant we see the only towers in the early‐20th‐ century, at the Particular Baptist chapel in Skegness (Fig. 36; survey number 48870) and at the former Wesleyan chapel on Broadway in Woodhall Spa (Fig. 37; survey number 47245). Even though there may be fewer extant early‐20th‐century buildings in East Lindsey than in the other districts of Lincolnshire, they are no less elaborate.

The nature of surviving nonconformist chapels of East Lindsey is broadly similar to that in the other districts surveyed. They date predominantly from the mid‐ and late‐19th century and are largely of Methodist origin. The earlier buildings are plain, but by the late‐19th century decoration, often quite elaborate decoration, becomes ubiquitous. The building material is exclusively brick, and although there is a conspicuous absence of stone‐built chapels, stone is a widely used as a dressing material. The most notable difference is that the number of chapels still in use as places of worship is relatively low, probably due to duplication of Methodist chapels in many rather small settlements during the peak of the Primitive and Free Methodist movements.

Acknowledgements

I would like to express my gratitude to Sarah Grundy, Mark Bennet and Beryl Lott of Lincolnshire County Council Historic Environment Team for all of their help and support given during this project, and also to Louise Jennings, Karen Waite, Jan Allen and Sarah Grundy for undertaking the necessary site visits.

Sources

Ordnance Survey 25‐inch County Series Map c.1905

Ordnance Survey 25‐inch County Series Map c.1932

Ordnance Survey 1:10,000 Maps c.1985

Lincs to the Past: http://www.lincstothepast.com/

Old‐Maps: http://www.old‐maps.co.uk/

Bibliography

Ambler R.W. Ed. 1979, Lincolnshire Returns of the Census of Religious Worship 1851. Lincoln Record Society Vol. 72. Lincoln: Lincoln Record Society

Ambler R.W. 2000, Churches, Chapels and Parish Communities of Lincolnshire 1660‐1900. A History of Lincolnshire Vol. IX. Lincoln: History of Lincolnshire Committee.

Ambler R.W. 1989, Ranters, Revivalists and Reformers: Primitive Methodism and Rural Society in South Lincolnshire 1817‐1875. Hull University Press

Ambler R.W. 2001, Protestant Nonconformity, c1700‐1851 in An Historical Atlas of Lincolnshire. Bennett S. and Bennet N. (Eds). Chichester: Phillimore

Leary W. 1988, Lincolnshire Methodism. Buckingham: Barracuda Books

Pevsner N. and Harris J. 1989, The Buildings of England: Lincolnshire. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books

Shepherdson, C. 2010, A List and Brief Details of Chapels in the Louth Circuit. Boston: Self‐Published

Shepherdson, C. 2010, A List and Brief Details of Chapels in the East Lincolnshire Circuit. Boston: Self‐ Published

Shepherdson, C. 2002, A List and Brief Details of Chapels in the Market Rasen and Caistor. Boston: Self‐Published

Stell C. 2002, An Inventory of Nonconformist Chapels and Meeting‐Houses in Eastern England. Swindon: English Heritage

White W. 1856 (republished 1969), White’s 1856 Lincolnshire (History, Gazetteer and Directory of Lincolnshire). Trowbridge: David & Charles

Appendix I: Diagrams

Fig. 1 – Distribution of chapels in East Lindsey by denomination

Fig. 2 – Distribution of chapels in East Lindsey by present use Fig. 3 – Distribution of chapels in East Lindsey by age of building

Appendix II: Photographs

Fig. 4 – Former Friends Meeting House, High Street, Wainfleet All Saints; survey number 47106

Fig. 5 – Former General Baptist chapel, Beesby Road, Maltby‐le‐Marsh; survey number 41461

Fig. 6 – General Baptist chapel, Monksthorpe, Great Steeping; survey number 43235

Fig. 7 – General Baptist chapel, Monksthorpe, Great Steeping; survey number 43235

Fig. 8 – Baptistery, General Baptist chapel, Monksthorpe, Great Steeping; survey number 43235

Fig. 9 – Burial ground, General Baptist chapel, Monksthorpe, Great Steeping; survey number 42235

Fig. 10 – Former Salvation Army Barracks, St John Street, Wainfleet All Saints; survey number 48311

Fig. 11 – Former Swedenborgian chapel, Croft Street, Horncastle; survey number 48817

Fig. 12 – Wesley's Chapel, Raithby Hall, Raithby; survey number 47450

Fig. 13 – Former Primitive Methodist chapel, Ranters Row, Alford; survey number 49009

Fig. 14 – Presbyterian chapel and burial ground, Mill Lane, Woodhall Spa; survey number 48209

Fig. 15 – Former Wesleyan Association chapel, Walkergate, Louth; survey number 48833

Fig. 16 – Former Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Conisholme; survey number 48762

Fig. 17 – Former Primitive Methodist chapel, Station Road, Sutton‐on‐Sea; survey number 48837

Fig. 18 – Former Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Chapel Lane, Minting; survey number 48850

Fig 19 – Former Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Marsh Road, Orby; survey number 48861

Fig. 20 – Former Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Chapel Lane, Manby; survey number 48845

Fig. 21 – Former Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Barkwith Road, South Willingham; survey number 48478

Fig. 22 – Former Particular Baptist chapel, Cagthorpe, Horncastle; survey number 47928

Fig. 23 – Former Primitive Methodist chapel, Main Street, Fulstow; survey number 48780

Fig. 23 – Former Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Thurlby Road, Bilsby; survey number 48748

Fig. 24 – Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Scrub Lane, Authorpe; survey number 48743

Fig. 25 – Former Primitive Methodist chapel, Fenside Road, Toynton Fenside; survey number 48899

Fig. 26 – Former Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Aswardby; survey number 48742

Fig. 27 – Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Chapel Lane, Friskney Eaudike, survey number 47993

Fig. 28 – Former Primitive Methodist chapel, Tetney Lock Road, Tetney; survey number 48889

Fig. 29 – General Baptist chapel, Eastgate, Louth; survey number 45535

Fig. 30 – Former Wesleyan Methodist chapel, West Street, Alford; survey number 45954

Fig. 31 – Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Eastgate, Louth; survey number 45622

Fig. 32 – Former Primitive Methodist chapel, South Street, Alford; survey number 45897

Fig. 33 – Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Algitha Road, Skegness; survey number 48869

Fig. 34 – Former Primitive Methodist chapel, Roman Bank, Skegness; survey number 48871

Fig. 35 – Former Wesleyan Methodist chapel, High Street, Mablethorpe; survey number 48842

Fig. 36 – Particular Baptist chapel, Beresford Avenue, Skegness; survey number 48870

Fig. 37 – Former Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Broadway, Woodhall Spa; survey number 47245

Fig. 38 – Former Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Dogdyke Road, New York; survey number 48908

Fig. 39 – Former Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Chapel Lane, Belchford; survey number 48747

Fig. 40 – Former Wesleyan Methodist chapel, Sandy Lane, Reeds Beck; survey number 48883

Fig. 41 – Congregational chapel, Hamilton Road, Alford; survey number 45895

Fig. 42 – Congregational chapel, Hamilton Road, Alford; survey number 45895

Fig. 43 – Congregational chapel, Hamilton Road, Alford; survey number 45895

Fig. 44 – Wesleyan Methodist chapel and burial ground, Back Lane, Old Bolingbroke; survey number 48750

Fig. 45 – General Baptist chapel and burial ground, Coningsby; survey number 48759

Fig. 46 – Former Congregational chapel and burial ground, Queen Street, Horncastle; survey number 47736

Fig. 47 – Former Wesleyan Methodist chapel and Sunday school, Main Road, East Kirkby; survey number 48774

Fig. 48 – Wesleyan Methodist chapel and Sunday school, Jackson Lane, Burgh‐le‐Marsh; survey numbet 48754

Fig. 49 – Wesleyan Methodist chapel and manses, Market Place, Spilsby; survey number 47078