Churches Other Than the Parish Church St
CHURCHES OTHER THAN THE PARISH CHURCH ST. MARY’S CHURCH, PLAISTOW, KENT. One o f the windows presented by Mr. Murray S. Richardson. From a photograph by M r. S . B . Webber. ■ [153 — K r i ^ / CHURCHES OTHER THAN THE PARISH CHURCH 'TOR more than seven centuries after its first foundation, the parish \ church of Bromley sufficiently satisfied all the ecclesiastical require ments of the town. As the town grew, so the parish church was f altered and enlarged, and no suggestion that any other church was needed seems to have been heard till the beginning of the nineteenth century. By that time a considerable population had established itself in the district around Bromley Common, and a proposition appears to have been put forward that a chapel-of-ease, as an off-shoot from the parish church, should be erected there. No steps, however, to carry any such proposition into effect were taken for another thirty years, things remaining as they were. It was in, or about, 1832 that a serious and combined effort was made to provide the necessary funds for building a church on Bromley Common which should be separate from, and independent of, the parish church. Colonel Long of Bromley Hill and his family contributed generously towards this project, and they were strongly supported by Bishop Murray of Roches ter. In 1839 the Church of Holy Trinity, Bromley Common, was com pleted, though without its tower, at a cost of £2,648, the want of a tower being supplied three years later at an additional cost of £500. In more recent times the church has been very largely indebted to the benefactions of the Norman family, and both within and without everywhere it bears traces of their devotion and liberality. Within, the chancel apse was added in 1884 by the family as a memorial to their father, Mr. George Warde Norman ; the stained-glass window in the south transept preserves the memory, at the hands of his children, of Mr. H(enry) Norman ; the church was reseated, and provided with a suitable heating apparatus by the late Mr. Charles Loyd Norman ; the pulpit and the small window in the north transept were gifts from other members of the Norman family. Outside, a large portion of the churchyard was the gift of Mr. George Warde Norman, its surrounding wall being constructed at the expense of his son, Air. C. L. Norman. Originally it seems to have been assumed that the right of presentation to the benefice was in the hands of the Bishop, and the first incumbent was appointed by the Bishop of Rochester. The nomination proved unfortunate, the first Vicar being compelled to resign within a year or two of his appoint ment. In the meantime the question had arisen as to whether the power of appointment really did belong to the Bishop or to the Vicar of Bromley, and, in circumstances of which I have no record, it was ultimately determined that the Vicar, and not the Bishop, was the legal patron of Holy Trinity. Accordingly the then Vicar of Bromley, Mr. Newell, exercised his right, in 1843, favour of the Rev. Arthur Rawson, and upon the resignation of Mr. Rawson, after a tenure of thirty-nine years, Mr. Hellicar presented the 153 154- B r o m l e y , Kent living to the Rev. F. W. Haines in 1882. The living is now, however, in the hands of the Bishop of Worcester. The Rev. Clement Rene Sharpe added, by his own exertions, a new vestry in 1905, and a village hall, opened in 1906, has proved of great value to the work of the parish. An Order in Council of 1843 assigned a definite district to the parish of Holy Trinity, but some portion of this original parish has now been absorbed into that of St. Luke’s. In the meantime the claims of the northern portion of the town were becoming insistent, and about the year i860 a scheme was set on foot to provide a church which should meet the wants of that district. Thus, largely through the liberal contributions of the Rev. H. C. Adams, Chaplain of the College, and his family, there came into existence the Church of St. Mary, Plaistow, the nave being consecrated by Archbishop Longley in 1863. Since then the church has been enlarged by the additions of a chancel (1881), a south transept (1893), a north transept, accompanied by considerable extension of the vestries (1900). A tower, however, is still lacking. Within, St. Mary owes much to the munificence of benefactors. The glass, by Mr. Curtiss, of Ward & Hughes, is good, consisting of an east window erected by Lady Scott in memory of her husband, Sir Edward H. Scott, a great benefactor to the church ; two chancel windows commemorate two infant daughters of Major Clement Satterthwaite, who, for over forty years, was constant in his devotion towards the church ; the seven windows in the nave are in memory of Mr. Emmett, and six, also in the nave, given by Mr. Murray Richardson, commemorate various members of his family. To Mr. Murray Richardson also the church owes its reredos and the decora tions of the chancel. The mural decoration of the nave was the gift of Mr. W. H. Bosanquet, and the fine brass lectern that of Mr. E. H. Bayley. The chancel gates and rail, given by communicants, were dedicated in 1913. There are within the church brasses to commemorate Hannah Graham, mother of the first Vicar ; F. Lewis Thomas, organist for thirty-seven years ; Gustav Loly, Headmaster of Quernmore School, and Chairman of the Education Committee ; Clement and Ellen Sarah Satterthwaite, “ who worked for their church from 1864 to 1906 ” ; and the Rev. W. Hodgson, Vicar from 1873 to 1898. A large church hall, erected in Farwig Lane (1904), at a cost of £5,000, testifies to the growing importance of the parish in population and parochial activity. The patronage of St. Mary is now in the hands of the Bishop of Rochester. About the same period which marks the erection of St. Mary, Plaistow, an entirely new centre of residential life and activity was springing into being towards the east and south-east of Bromley and Widmore. Up to the year /tm -icfo x F>r H c ^ „ /foi- 'to L CU~c~t- SkaAsJtC. )tfoU - 7 f .T Ckikfit^eC ~U. /9<0 ~'h m^K. kJh. Sn*-6*y iq/ U ~ /*«*j /*ls ft (rr*>ks^n%. S/- ffLn - S>X HctKiJt. ytu.Lrnrmi /try} - t A?* •^W . /f J/ Jlx», ■ *■ •» •rXAu+A-'k. rr+.^mr-p.,Si~ sA*, mirWin *-/>•**> Churches other than the "Parish Church U 5 1861 Bickley Park was what its name implies, a park surrounding a sub stantial residence, the property of Mr. Wm. Dent. In that year the property was sold to Mr. George Wythes, who immediately embarked on extensive schemes of development. These schemes included the erection of a church which should be in every way suitable to such a district, and by the arrange ment of the sale a large sum of money was set apart for this purpose. The building of a church, dedicated to St. George, was begun in 1863. This church was opened for services, under licence from the Archbishop, in 1864, c*-*/-■ £■'t-o-w and was finally consecrated by Archbishop Longley on July 19th, 1865. Meantime arrangements were in progress for assigning to the church a parochial district which should be independent of the mother church of Bromley, but, as these arrangements took long to complete, the first minister of St. George’s Church was one of the curates of Bromley Parish Church, the Rev. Walter Field. The Rev. J. P. Alcock was then in charge for a short time, though not apparently legally appointed, and it was not until 1867 that a perpetual curate was formally instituted in the person of the Rev. E. J. Selwyn. Six years later Mr. Selwyn exchanged livings with the Rev. E. H. Plumptre, who, in 1882, was translated from Bickley to the Deanery of Wells, being succeeded at Bickley by the Rev. G. W. Weldon. Unofficially the Vicars of St. George’s have taken over the care of the Widmore portion o f Bromley parish, an arrangement which necessitated the erection of National Schools, and of a supplementary mission church in Nightingale Lane. The Church of St. George itself was an imposing structure, crowned by a tower and spire 175 feet high. This spire, however, being built of Caen stone, which is highly perishable, was found to be in a dangerous state within forty years of its erection, and in 1905-6 was at great cost rebuilt of more durable material to the design of Sir E. Newton, a native of the parish. Within, the church consists of a nave, 100 feet by 30 feet, with five bays, north and south aisles, north and south transepts, and a chancel, 42 feet by 2 3 feet, with apsidal end. The original organ by Hill was enlarged in 1910 at a cost of £ 1,5 00, and has thus been rendered worthy of all the other internal appointments of the church, and of the services conducted within it. The whole structure, whether judged from the point of view of architecture or from that of its fittings and decoration, constitutes a notable addition to the churches of Kent. Notwithstanding the successive improvements and extensions of the parish church which have been recorded in the last chapter, the rapid growth of the town from 1850 onwards and the development of the area known as New Bromley were continually forcing the question of further church accommodation to the front. In 1870 that question, in spite of the quite recent construction of St. Mary, Plaistow, became urgent, and various schemes were put forward which were the occasion of lively controversy. 156 B r o m l e y , Kent Some were for the further extension of the parish church ; some were for building an altogether new church in the area where it was required, others were for doing nothing. It is unnecessary to revive the somewhat heated correspondence in the local press, and what Mr. Hellicar calls “ the war of pamphlets ” to which these various opinions gave rise. Ultimately Arch bishop Tait was called in to adjudicate, and he decided that if the Vicar of Bromley could supply the existing needs by means of a chapel-of-ease, he had the right to do so. A scheme on this basis was immediately adopted, and a site secured by lease in Park Road. A sum of £75 o was raised without difficulty, and the Vicar and churchwardens set themselves to the task o f securing a ready-built church. It so happened that the town o f Ryde in the Isle of Wight had for sale a large iron church which had been used while the existing parish church of that town was under construction. Accordingly the Vicar, accompanied by his churchwardens, Messrs. Holworthy and Baxter, made an expedition to Ryde, and then and there effected a purchase for £45 o. At an additional cost of £224 the building was transferred to Bromley and erected upon the chosen site. The church was opened on Ascension Day, 1872, with the Rev. C. R. D^Engstrom as curate-in-charge. It was from the first regarded as only a makeshift— though the old iron church served its purpose very well— and constant efforts were made both to procure a freehold site and also the means to erect a permanent church. These efforts were so far successful that by July 1879 sufficient funds had been collected to enable the building to be begun, the foundation-stone being then laid by Dr. Parry, the Bishop of Dover. In May 1880 the church was completed and consecrated by Archbishop Tait under the name of the Church of St. John the Evangelist. It was built from the designs o f Mr. G. Truefitt by Mr."T. Crossley of Bromley at a cost of £5,400, inclusive of the site, as a chapel-of-ease to the parish church. This arrangement, however, was of very short duration. Before the end of the year the separate parish of St. John’s was carved out of Bromley parish, with its own distinct functions and institutions. From the first initiation of the scheme St. John’s owed much to the activities and assistance of Sir Edward Scott, and since its completion there have been added, chiefly as the result of his munificence, some stained glass in the windows of the apse, oak choir stalls, a pulpit, and an organ. An oak screen, the gift of the parishioners, was added in 1914. Meanwhile the development of the southern area of the town was proceeding apace, the Church of Holy Trinity being by this time quite inadequate to its ecclesiastical needs. Proposals for the erection of an additional church were in the air as early as 1872, but nothing was done till nine years later when Mr. S. Cawston, afterwards of Bromley Hill, purchased a piece of freehold land at the corner of Addison Road. On this site he erected at his own expense, save for a donation of £100 from Mr. G. W. Norman, an iron church, to which he appointed a curate-in-charge, and J lftz U ^ /H*: fr tu ^ p tv u r ; / ^ ) *r+~s>*€ r*V)n i L ^ Sut^ . '^ z . Jixnx- !tr& 5 SUZ l. / '7}a~*<. 7hrw~x fSe^xr^. 7ax.u ^t ~J c*« *fL<*rO*~*~~ CL A H-O- INI £ U S£ N l^u-C Aja *£.£»»«■«*• t**UyH*+Utr | m.irr'e Chajscsl- { 0 k*** /c A. y**i.~ A*rA ^ 7 Churches other than the Parish Church x59 This is of plain Romanesque design, consisting of a nave, shallow north and south aisles, the base of a tower, and two side-chapels; a gallery over the west end being provided for the Community of the Holy Trinity Convent housed at Freelands, which house has, since its purchase, been doubled in size. Adjoining the church a presbytery has been built, and an elementary day school. There is a branch church of St. Swithuns in Fashoda Road, Bromley Common. We now pass to the numerous Nonconformist churches or chapels which have sprung up in the town during the last hundred and fifty years. The. history of Nonconformity in Bromley in any organised and perma nent form seems to date from somewhere around 1770, when the influence of Wesley’s great evangelical movement had already penetrated to Bromley. For on December 2nd, 1772, Wesley himself came to Bromley and preached at a house at Widmore even then in use by members of his organisation. In his Journal is the following entry : “ I preached, at the new preaching house, in the parish of Bromley. In speaking severally to the members of the Society I was surprised at the openness and artlessness of the people. Such I should never have expected to find within ten miles of London.” The reference to “ the members of the Society ” clearly proves that already there existed in Bromley an organised body of adherents to Wesley’s general principles, though this fact by no means necessarily implies any definite breach with the Church of England, Wesley continuing to his dying day to designate himself as a member and minister of that Church, from which he had neither separated himself, nor wished that others should separate. This visit, followed as it was by a supply of local preachers who were followers of Wesley, caused the community so to increase in numbers that in 1776 they erected a small chapel between Nos. 12 and 13 on theChislehurst Road at Widmore Green. This seated about sixty persons, the services at first being held only in the afternoon. It continued to exist for its original purpose for over a century, served by such devoted men as Thomas How, James How, William Gomer, James Brown, and Thomas Gallon, but the erection, in 1884-5, of a new chapel in Tylney Road at last made it super fluous and it was surrendered in 1888, and now serves the office of a garage. On its front gable, however, is still the foundation-tablet worded : “ Wesleyan Chapel, 1776. Restored 18^7.” By the end of the first quarter of the nineteenth century the growth of Wesleyanism in Bromley had rendered necessary the construction of a chapel in the centre of the town. A suitable site was found off the Upper High Street, about thirty yards back between Nos. 66 and 67, and on it was erected *-* /Szy i6o Bromley, K en t Zion Chapel, with a schoolroom beneath it, the whole structure being con spicuous for the want of all ornament or adventitious architectural attraction. An unfortunate split in the congregation resulted in the withdrawal of half the members, who thus found it necessary to construct a chapel for them selves, and so, in 1842, a second Zion Chapel came into existence at Farwig. The original chapel in Upper High Street has now given place to a handsome Gothic structure, situated in Lower High Street, from the designs of Mr. W. W. Pocock. Its foundation-stone was laid by Sir Francis Lycett in October 1875. The chapel was opened for public worship in November 1876. The interior of the chapel shows a simple arrangement of nave, chancel, and two aisles, contained under a single oak vaulted roof. An east window of five lights contains, in three of them, the figures of Faith, Hope, and Charity; the remaining two lights being merely tinted. Some good glass is to be seen in some of the ten windows in the aisles, notably the memorial window to Mr. John Gibbs, of which the subject is ‘ The Light o f the World.’ Tablets and memorial brasses intervene between the windows to commemorate William Powell, Eleanor Ellis, John Gibbs, James How, and H. Ellis, the windows themselves being memorials to various devoted members of the congregation. In 1925 the chapel was entirely renovated and beautified as a Jubilee gift. The chancel was finely panelled in oak as a memorial to William Marsh and John and Charlotte Gibbs. The marble font is to the memory of Louisa Hinchliffe, the oak reading-desk to that of Edward B. Rawlings, and the oak pulpit to that of J. H. Hall. Complete and commodious school premises to the north-east of the chapel subserve the various extraneous activities of the congregation, being well adapted not only for the purposes of education but also for public meetings, gymnastic classes, and other miscellaneous uses. These were opened in 1893, having been erected at a cost of upwards o f £3,000. Bromley is now the centre of a Methodist circuit which includes Beckenham, Widmore, Keston, Clock-House, and Farnborough. The manse is situated at the rear of the chapel in Holwood Road. In the long list of triennial ministers are to be found the names of Dr. I. S. Simon, afterwards President of the Wesleyan Conference of 1907. Two other Presidents have been at some time attached to the Bromley Circuit, Dr. Frederick Greeves and the Rev. Marshall Hartley. Wesley’s visit to Bromley, referred to earlier, immediately followed a tour in South Wales, whither he had gone in the summer of 1772 to visit the new seminary established at Trevecca House, near Talgarth, by the celebrated Selina, Dowager Countess of Huntingdon. This lady, who was the patroness of George Whitefield, her chaplain, had warmly embraced the most extreme tenets of Calvinistic Methodism, and had formed what was termed ‘ a connexion ’ for the purpose of organising and propagating her theological views. This * connexion ’ included any who were generally sympathetic > rttSHg/'J. /Sr^O 4L. C oS- AAshr, ' ^ * * t O + d + s* y>v*'C'L±, £k.j4f X-+* /He *PJtreL /*#<# 2. ^ ~Pn unt. WESLEYAN CHAPEL, UPPER HIGH STREET, 1863. 160] < h h r * * ht// Q_ /c.msj(_ Jo*v*K**>gl . ^ *”*£ frye^ nsr^ y^ 1*^, f i (m e*?****. 6^ /tV^Ta/CZ^. St*A,gc+M, , 7 l^o<. fa t VoC-tfrJir 4m/- 4 uj//o^ 4v. Repeat orders or enlargements may be had at any time. ! 1% * s > : 55- ' J K i * A. \ ^ SSi c Churches other than the Parish Church 161 towards Lady Huntingdon’s principles, regardless of denominational label, for Wesleyans, Whitefieldians, Baptists, and some ministers of the Church of Englandenrolledthemselvesunder the banner of the Huntingdon Connexion. The noble birth, the high social position, and the aristocratic associations of this lady gave a tone of fashionable propriety to the new evangelicalism. Lady Huntingdon attracted to her drawing-room meetings men and women of the highest rank and consideration, to listen to sermons from Whitefield or Romaine. Lords Chesterfield and Bolingbroke paid grave compliments to the eloquence o f the preachers. Bath, Cheltenham, and Tunbridge Wells followed London in enthusiasm for the new movement. At length there came the turn of Bromley to fall under its influence. It was either in 1788, or shortly before, that a few London ministers began the practice of walking from Bishopsgate to Bromley on Sundays in order to teach the children, and to preach the Gospel to whoever would listen to them. O f these some, such as Aldridge, Harper, and Thomas Wills, were definitely associated with Lady Huntingdon, and her Connexion — some were Baptists, some were clergymen of the English Church. Meeting first in a house in Isard’s yard, they soon found it necessary to contemplate the erection of a permanent building, and on September 26th, 1788, the foundation-stone of Bethel Chapel was laid in what was afterwards known as Centenary Place, the chapel itself being completed at a cost of £200, and opened on November 26th of the same year. No departure, however, from the teaching of the Church of England was originally intended. The service book used from the beginning was the Prayer Book ; and Jacob’s Psalmody or Rowland Hill’s Collection provided the hymns. In the course of a few years, however, the congregation tended to assume an independent character, and, in 1796, on the formation of the London Itinerant Society, Bethel Chapel was placed under its care and supervision. A Mr. Browning, one of Whitefield’s coadjutors at the Taber nacle in Tottenham Court Road, and himself a member, if not a minister, of the Church of England, was entrusted with the general superintendence of the Bethel Chapel and pulpit. Having formed a matrimonial connection with the lady who originally supplied tea to the visiting ministers, Mr. Browning established himself as a resident in Bromley, and continued so to reside until his death in 1827. His successor was Mr. William Holland, a member of the London Itinerant Society, and appointed by it, though neither a minister nor member of the Church of England, but a Baptist. By this time, however, the original chapel had become too small to accommodate all those who were desirous of attending it. It was therefore determined to build a larger one. A subscription list was opened with such satisfactory results that a site was selected in close proximity to the old chapel, and the work of clearing the ground for the foundations of the new building was on the point of beginning. But just at this time Mr. John Bromley, an auctioneer and land surveyor 11 162 Bromley, K en t of Commercial Road, London, who had been an agent of the Itinerant Society for many years, came to live in Bromley and at once attached himself to the Bethel Chapel community, with whose tenets he was in complete accord. Being, of course, made acquainted with the project in hand, he asked to see the lease. Mr. Bromley’s inspection of the lease led him to the opinion that the land in question was not the property of Mr. Isard, the lessor, but of the Bishop of Rochester as Lord of the Manor, an opinion which ultimately proved to be correct. It was therefore necessary to begin all over again and secure a suitable site. Mr. Bromley himself solved the problem by purchasing a plot from the sale of Mr. Cator’s land in Widmore Lane. A portion of this land he offered to the Trustees on a lease o f 99 years at £10 per annum with the right of purchase within ten years. Mr. Bromley fixed the purchase price at £160, as against £200 suggested by the Trustees, and showed himself in every way anxious to assist the cause. He himself laid the foundation-stone of the new building in June 183 5, and on a tablet outside the building the name * Bromley Chapel ’ was inscribed. Before the completion o f the building, however, fresh difficulties arose owing to differences of opinion between Mr. Bromley, the Itinerant Society, and the Bromley Committee, as to the exact theological doctrine for which Bromley Chapel stood. In Mr. Bromley’s opinion the chapel was being erected not for Independents, or for any other specific denomination, but in order to give substance in Bromley to Lady Huntingdon’s Connexion, which, as has been seen, was supported by individuals belonging to many and varying schools of thought. In the Trust Deed Mr. Bromley insisted upon the insertion of fifteen Doctrinal Articles, acceptable to the Huntingdon Connexion, and recognised by the Church of England. These articles therefore became a condition of the Trust, and at the same time a subject of ^ violent controversy and disagreement. The question was submitted by the 'r*iL ^ T " Itinerant Society to the Congregational Board of Ministers, in direct opposi- ‘ tion to the views of Mr. Bromley, who denied that the Congregationalists u had any status in the matter. Feeling ran high. An anonymous partisan came forward with an offer of £1,000 on loan at 4 per cent, if the fifteen Articles were excluded from the Trust Deed. Mr. Bromley threatened to cancel the Trust Deed altogether and to withdraw from the undertaking if the Articles were excluded. Eventually the dispute was composed in a manner favourable to Mr. Bromley, who paid arrears due to the builders, advanced considerable sums on mortgage, presented the land on which the chapel stood, together with a right of way to it, in freehold for ever, and himself for a time, in conjunction with others, ministered within the building. These casual ministrations were, however, in the course of a year or two supplanted by a permanent residential pastorate. In April 1837 George Verrall became Pastor of Bromley Chapel, and it was he apparently who, in the course of a ministry extending over twenty-two years, gave to it that distinctively Congregational character which it has since maintained. CONGREGATIONAL CHAPEL, WIDMORE LANE. Built 1835 ; pulled down 1880. BAPTIST CHAPEL, PARK ROAD. Built 1864. Churches other than the Parish Church 163 Verrall resigned in 1859 and was succeeded in turn by E. Bolton, D. F. Longwill, and R. Tuck, who resigned in October 1880. By this year the activities of the chapel had outgrown its dimensions. It was therefore determined to build an entirely new one on the existing site, and for two years the work of demolition and reconstruction was in ^ ^ progress. In 1881 the foundation-stone of the new building was laid by ^-sitro 'r' Mr. Samuel Morley,M.P., and by the end of thatyear the work was completed at a cost little short of £15,000. It provided seats for 650 people, but in a ^ 3 ^ few years even this accommodation was found to be insufficient. In 1886 crs/r- the chapel was enlarged by 350 additional sittings at a cost of over £4,500, and two years later a further sum of £1,400 was provided for enlarging the schoolroom. The chapel was again enlarged in 1894, providing about 200 more sittings. A handsome war memorial was erected in the entrance lobby in 1920, and in the same year a minister’s house was presented. This new chapel was built from the designs of John Sulman, A.R.I.B.A. Facing north and south it consists of a nave, two aisles, and transepts ; the latter and the north end of the nave being surmounted by galleries. The organ is by Brindley & Foster. The pulpit, in marble and stone, was erected in memory of the first permanent pastor, George Verrall, by his sons. Various brasses upon the walls commemorate past ministers, deacons, and benefactors. _ On the completion of the new chapel in 1882, the Rev. Robert Henry *•»"'**• Lovell was appointed pastor, a man still remembered for his eloquence and power as a preacher, for the unaffected simplicity of his life, and for his influence as a man. It was he who laid the foundations of the future strength ^ O 'f Aas*j Scsim^CCf S~ (A a/ ? ~ ^ / tslnrry^ 'T^C ~CT^^Csi't.^ - ^ , /+. ^ S e c * Churches other than the Parish Church i 6j the course of time arose with the landlord, a Mr. Goswell Johnson, himself a man of very pronounced views with which it may be supposed the little community in some way found itself in conflict. It was excluded for a time from its premises, and, with small prospect of renewing the lease, it was found necessary to take immediate steps to secure a permanent building as its own property. Notwithstanding the fact that there were no available funds, nor any wealthy members, nor any large or influential body of sup porters, the project advanced, and, largely through the energies of the Rev. Elijah Jackson, a sufficient sum was ultimately collected to justify a beginning. The foundation-stone of a new chapel was duly laid in Bloom field Road, Bromley Common, and the building opened for services in March 1877. By the beginning of the present century, however, the chapel had proved too small for its congregation. It was therefore determined to erect a new building upon the unused portion of the site, and to relegate the existing chapel to the uses of a schoolroom. The principal foundation-stone of the existing structure was laid in April 1907 by Alderman R. W. James, Mayor of Bromley ; the architects being Messrs. Mould & Porritt, and the builders Messrs. J. Podger & Sons. The total cost amounted to over £5,000. In 1899 Bromley became established as part of a new circuit, with Penge and Orpington, and in 1907 the superintendent minister— the Rev. John T. Taylor— removed from Penge to Bromley in order to be in the centre of the circuit. Mr. Taylor was succeeded in turn by the Revs. W. Curry, E. Lucas, Harvey Roe, and J. Marcus Brown, the present minister, who came to Bromley in 1920. The Presbyterian Church, though late in coming, finds itself worthily represented in Bromley. It was not till 1895 that the existing church was erected, but when once the project was started it was carried through in a thoroughly effective way. The group of buildings, at the junction of Upper Park and Freelands Roads, comprise not only the church, but a commodious lecture hall, easily adapted for the purposes of a Sunday school, a session room, classrooms, kitchen, deacons’ room and offices all suitably equipped, the whole being admirably planned, and adding in the mass an architectural attraction to that part of the town. The church, surmounted by a spire 118 feet high, is cruciform in shape, its transepts, however, being very shallow, and consists of a nave and two aisles, the east end being raised by two steps above the level of the main building. Over the transepts are galleries, as also over the lobby at the west end. The windows, filled only with tinted glass, present no feature o f special interest, but the plain unpolished oak panelling of the east end, the choir stalls and pulpit of the same wood give distinction to the interior. The font is of highly polished Carrara marble set upon coloured marble pilasters, all of these adornments, panelling, choir stalls, pulpit, and font, being gifts to commemorate friends and benefactors. Among the bene factors the name of Mr. Robert Whyte, Jr., stands out conspicuously— a man 166 Bromley, K en t remarkable for loftiness of character, integrity of purpose, and disinterested public spirit. He still remains in the memory o f the writer as one whose mere appearance inspired confidence and respect. In the sphere of social service great things were expected of him, and in that sphere no expectations, however high, were disappointed. A marble tablet, affixed to the wall of the north aisle, commemorates his virtues, and the services rendered by him to the church o f which, for thirteen years, he was an elder. Other memorials in the form of brasses and marble tablets recall the memory of departed friends and benefactors, one in particular being worthy of special note. It is a brass, commemorating the ministry and devoted services of Dr. Charles Moinet, the first minister o f the Presbyterian Church in Bromley, whose reputation extended far beyond the limits o f any given locality, for, in 1899, he was chosen as Moderator of the Synod of the Presbyterian Church of England. In addition to the various churches and chapels of which some story has been given, it may be mentioned that the Strict Baptists had for many years an iron building in College Slip; the Plymouth Brethren have a gospel hall in Freelands G rove; the Salvation Army first established barracks in Bromley in 1886; and, in comparatively recent times, the Christian Scientists have attracted a considerable following, and have lately converted their temporary accommodation in Widmore Road into one of those structures which now distinguish so many towns in this country and in America. It is appropriate here to mention the Bromley Common Iron Room Mission, instituted and carried on by Mr. Matthew Henry Hodder for nearly forty years. Coming to Bromley about 1861, he resided at Bromley Common. Finding that district lacked opportunity for religious worship, he at once endeavoured to supply the need by services in the open air and in a tent. In 1873 he had an Iron Room erected in Great Elms Road. From that date he continuously carried on, with the aid of friends, undenominational services until 1910, when advancing years compelled him to transfer the responsibility to others. Every object for the betterment both physical and spiritual o f those among whom he lived had his sympathy and support. He was a member o f the Cottage Hospital Committee, and was associated with the Charitable Society from its inauguration in 1885 until his death in 1911, serving it as Treasurer for twenty-three years. Outside Bromley, the Y.M .C.A., o f which he was a founder and for fifty years a staunch supporter, the Ragged Schools, for which he worked for more than sixty years, are but two of the many good causes to which he devoted his services. His funeral furnished a significant illustration of the impression a really good life makes upon those who come in contact with it. The barriers of sect were thrown down. Churchmen and Nonconformists united in showing affectionate and sincere respect to one who for fifty years had lived among them a life o f unselfish devotion to the welfare of others.