Nonconformist Chapels in West Lindsey
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Nonconformist chapels in West Lindsey 1 Summary A survey of nonconformist chapels in West Lindsey was carried out during December 2004 to March 2005. Initially a desk-based assessment was carried out, using readily available documentary sources and maps, in order to identify those chapels in existence at the beginning of the twentieth century. These sites were then visited, and a rapid survey was carried out during which exterior photographs were taken, and a survey form was filled in, in order to record briefly the main construction materials, architectural features, dating of the building, its level of survival and various other details. Of the surviving nonconformist chapels in West Lindsey, 10 (or 8.5%) are listed buildings with statutory protection. Those chapels whose locations are isolated are rarer than those that are not, and do seem to be under more threat. The most common chapels are those built during the second half of the nineteenth century of red brick with a slate roof. Pantile roofs are much less common than slate roofs. Gault brick chapels are unusual, and stone chapels are extremely rare in West Lindsey. There does not appear to be any correlation between threat to, or survival of, the buildings and their denomination, but Primitive and Free Methodist are rarer because fewer were built. The Gothic and Classical style buildings are also relatively few in number, particularly those belonging to the Primitive Methodists and the Free Methodists. It is also very important to remember that the size, style and survival of nonconformist chapels depends very much on local circumstances and pressures. It seems that the greatest threat to the buildings is unsympathetic conversion for alternative uses, when much, if not all, of the character of the building may be, and often is, lost. Features that add most of the external character to the chapel buildings, and that appear to be particularly under threat, are the original windows and doors. Roofs, too, are also often changed during conversions to alternative uses, when dormer and velux windows are often added, particularly where the chapel was originally a single storey building and has subsequently been converted to two storey residential use. Many of the roofs of surviving chapels have been replaced. The chapel buildings, in all their diverse forms, have been, and often still are, an important part of the spiritual and social life and architectural landscape of Lincolnshire. Their diversity is part of what makes these buildings important, and reflects differing social, economic, religious and aesthetic values and aspirations between the communities who built them. Some of the threats to the structure and character of the buildings have been identified during the survey in West Lindsey, and it is hoped that a greater understanding of their significance and survival will be gained during further survey work in the county. 2 Report on the Survey of Nonconformist Chapels in West Lindsey Introduction Nonconformist chapels are an important part of the built heritage in Lincolnshire to which many members of the public can relate. These form prominent and attractive historic features of the street scene in many of the county’s towns and villages. There was, and is, a significant nonconformist presence in the county with, in particular, a strong Methodist presence. The birth-place of John Wesley is at Epworth in North Lincolnshire, just across the county boundary, and he is known to have preached in Lincolnshire. As congregations have declined, nonconformist chapels are a type of building that has come increasingly under threat from conversion. Very often the conversions that have been undertaken involve extensive alterations to historic fabric which considerably change a chapel’s character, leading to a consequent change of street scene and townscape. This is eroding the ‘sense of place’ in many of our historic villages. The purpose of the survey In order to be able to provide information for planning purposes on the historic character and significance of extant nonconformist chapels and their associated buildings, information on the surviving buildings is required. Therefore, a survey of surviving historic nonconformist chapels and their associated buildings was conducted, and this information has been added to the Historic Environment Record. The survey comprised a desk-based assessment using maps and documentary sources. This was followed by a rapid field survey, during which exterior photographs were taken, and a survey form (see Appendix 2) was filled in, in order to record briefly the main construction materials, architectural features, dating of the building, its level of survival and various other details. The survey was not detailed as it had to be completed within a limited time-scale. Initially the survey has been carried out in West Lindsey as a pilot for a wider survey, but it is proposed that the survey should be continued to encompass the complete county. Historical background to nonconformism in Lincolnshire The statistics used in the general background apply to the historic county of Lincolnshire, but are, nevertheless, useful to illustrate the proportions of the dissenting and nonconformist congregations. The Dissenters were those groups who did not accept the Elizabethan Prayer Book, which received Royal Assent in May 1662. Under the Declaration of Indulgence of 1672, which allowed toleration of dissent, dissenting churches and ministers were expected to be licensed (Ambler 2000, pp.14-17). Only the Quakers were not. At the end of the eighteenth century there were 110 dissenting congregations in the historic county of Lincolnshire. The largest group of Dissenters were Baptists, with 57 congregations. There were 28 Quaker congregations, 12 Presbyterian, 2 Presbyterian or Independent, and 11 congregations of no denomination. By 1851, the number of congregations had risen to 123, the rise being mostly accounted for by the growth of the Independents by 38 (the Lincolnshire Association of Independent Churches later became the Lincolnshire Congregational Union). By 1871 there were 41 Congregational churches, which, by 3 1900, had fallen to 35. The numbers of Baptist congregations had fallen to 54 (Ambler 2000, pp.87-89). The dissenting congregations and their chapels were clustered in the communities of the fens and the fen edge in the south, the Isle of Axholme, the marshlands in north-eastern Lincolnshire, the southern parts of the Wolds, and a group to the south-west of Lincoln (Ambler 2000, p.86). Methodism Connexions and patterns of spread in West Lindsey and Lincolnshire Wesleyan Methodism came to Lincolnshire through John Wesley in the mid eighteenth century. Wesleyan beliefs were focussed on the individual, the salvation of that individual and a desire for simplicity in religion (Cornish Survey, p.7; Ambler 2000, p.134). By 1790 there were 18 meeting places in Lincolnshire, which were organised into a series of ‘circuits’ (Ambler 2000, p.130). These were fluid Methodist districts, a system also used by the later secessions and new Methodist connexions. They were centred administratively on one place with an itinerant preacher (later known as a minister), local lay preachers and circuit officers. They were flexible, could respond to local needs and expand or contract as required (Cornish survey, p.19). The first Wesleyan circuits within the boundary of the present administrative county of Lincolnshire were based in Gainsborough, Louth and Horncastle. The Wesleyans were the largest group of Methodists in Lincolnshire. The first secession from Wesleyan Methodism was the New Connexion, founded in 1797, which had little impact in Lincolnshire. They had a circuit in Boston, and a chapel is recorded in Gainsborough, which had ceased to exist by 1850 (Ambler 2000, p.132; Methodist Circuit document index). The Primitive Methodists were a secession of Methodism that started in Staffordshire, and came to Lincolnshire in 1817-1818. By 1822 the first circuits had been set up in Scotter, Lincoln and Louth. The secession occurred because the Wesleyans were seen increasingly as conservative, rigid, decorous and institutionalised. By contrast, the Primitive Methodists were evangelist and vigorous, and their spread was driven by revivalism, rather than by planning. They grew to be the second largest Methodist group in Lincolnshire (Ambler 2000, p.132). A later secession of Wesleyan Methodism was the Wesleyan Association (later known as the Wesleyan Methodist Association), which had little impact in Lincolnshire. The Wesleyan Reformers were formed due to a sense of unease at the apparent insensitivity of Wesleyan ministers and officers to their societies. These two groups later joined to form the Free Methodists, which flourished in the 1850s, and had its first national assembly in 1857 (Ambler 2000, pp.132, 151). In 1907 the Free Methodists and the New Connexion united to form the United Methodist Church. Finally, in 1932, the United Methodist Church, the Primitive Methodists and the Wesleyan Methodists joined to form the Methodists (Cornish survey, p.25). 4 The pattern of take-up of Methodism varied according to local circumstances, which included the character of the society at different times. There were concentrations of Methodists, particularly the Wesleyans, in the Isle of Axholme, the Trent Valley, the Fens and the coastal marsh. This could be explained by the character of those communities, where looser social structures allowed nonconformism to flourish. The Primitive Methodists tended to have greater success in the north, in the stronger, more independent societies. Where the Wesleyans appealed more to skilled and semi-skilled workers, the Primitive Methodists had more success in the poorer communities of unskilled workers, which included agricultural communities. In other places, such as Kesteven and north of Lincoln, the authorities, who tended to mistrust Methodism, exercised firm control over parish affairs (Ambler 2000, p.136). This was reflected during the survey, when it was noted that chapels had generally not been built in ‘closed’ villages, such as Brocklesby, which has been, and still is, owned by the Brocklesby Estate.