# Wilden Baptist Chapel



## Rubex (Aug 14, 2015)

Taken from information gathered online: This church claims 1806 as its foundation, but its old Church Book is lost. It is known that Solomon Hawkins was Pastor and was succeeded by his son, Jabez Hawkins, who had a small farm at Begwary and journeyed across every Sunday from 1845 to 1857. His successor, Mr. Ganton, baptised sixteen young men and women one Sunday in an open-air baptistry, the water being brought in buckets from the brook a hundred yards away.

Personally, I can't see this information being true as the building itself looks way too modern, but you can see for yourselves from the photos. From looking around the church, it seems that the last order of service was in 2012.

























































Thanks for looking,

Rubex


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## degenerate (Aug 15, 2015)

Nice work Rubex, you shoot - you score again! I believe that's what they say anyway!


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## Sam Haltin (Aug 15, 2015)

Nice post and good photography. This looks like a small community church but the two plastic chairs (picture 3) are just out of place. At the back of the chairs I noticed that a hymn book holder has been added (picture 4). It looks like the chairs were purchased then the holder was added. That is a beautiful organ (picture 7) and imported from Canada, very rare for an English church. And picture 8 this looks like the original pews.


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## smiler (Aug 15, 2015)

Nice Work Rubex, The lawn chairs do look out of place but I noticed that the cushion on one of them is from a wheelchair, maybe they were for the users, I enjoyed looking, Thanks


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## Rubex (Aug 15, 2015)

Hugh Jorgan said:


> Nice post and good photography. This looks like a small community church but the two plastic chairs (picture 3) are just out of place. At the back of the chairs I noticed that a hymn book holder has been added (picture 4). It looks like the chairs were purchased then the holder was added. That is a beautiful organ (picture 7) and imported from Canada, very rare for an English church. And picture 8 this looks like the original pews.



Wow, as always Hugh Jorgan - thank you for all that information! Would you never post a report yourself? I could imagine your reports would be quite something


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## Rubex (Aug 15, 2015)

smiler said:


> Nice Work Rubex, The lawn chairs do look out of place but I noticed that the cushion on one of them is from a wheelchair, maybe they were for the users, I enjoyed looking, Thanks



Thank you and I agree Smiler, I did think they looked out of the place - I had a little giggle at them! I also thought that they could be for wheelchair users, or people of a larger build :laugh:


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## krela (Aug 15, 2015)

It's perfectly possible there was an older church building there dating back, that has since been replaced with a more modern building. This is true of almost all churches, they evolve / grow / get replaced over time.


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## Rubex (Aug 15, 2015)

krela said:


> It's perfectly possible there was an older church building there dating back, that has since been replaced with a more modern building. This is true of almost all churches, they evolve / grow / get replaced over time.



Thank you Krela


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## mookster (Aug 15, 2015)

Beautiful little gem!


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## Mikeymutt (Aug 15, 2015)

That's a lovely set there rubex..really enjoyed it


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## TheNarrator (Aug 15, 2015)

I love how the organ is situated amongst the chairs - like a bit of an after thought! Great photos Rubex


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## Sam Haltin (Aug 16, 2015)

Rubex said:


> Wow, as always Hugh Jorgan - thank you for all that information! Would you never post a report yourself? I could imagine your reports would be quite something



Thanks for the hint Rubex but alas I have arthritis in the left knee and I struggle going uphill, downhill, upstairs and downstairs. But I am formulating a plan to put a report on here but I think it would be bunker related as in cold war bunkers. I know a few in Germany and I'll probably leave that for next year. Thanks for your nice comment though.


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## Sazza (Aug 21, 2015)

Speaking as a baptist, the church was likely founded in 1806 by a minister arriving and starting to gather a small group of likeminded individuals in a home, then as the group became established money would be raised from amongst the members to build a chapel. The architecture here looks very similar to another Baptist chapel I know that was built in about 1852/3, even to the layout of the building and the style of windows, pews and pulpit. As non-conformists the members were more likely to be working class and I notice that there is a reference online to lace making, which is the same industry that employed the early founders of the chapel I'm familiar with. This would mean there wouldn't be much money for good quality building, or for decoration, which Baptists disliked anyway. Also, some baptist groups didn't believe in singing in church which might explain why an organ was added as an afterthought rather than being built in.


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## krela (Aug 21, 2015)

Interesting Sazza thank you. Am I right in thinking that many of the tin churches were Baptist? I can't remember offhand.


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## tumble112 (Aug 21, 2015)

Almost missed this, another nice post.


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## smiler (Aug 21, 2015)

Hugh Jorgan said:


> Thanks for the hint Rubex but alas I have arthritis in the left knee and I struggle going uphill, downhill, upstairs and downstairs. But I am formulating a plan to put a report on here but I think it would be bunker related as in cold war bunkers. I know a few in Germany and I'll probably leave that for next year. Thanks for your nice comment though.



I'm with you on that Hugh and it's a real buggerer when it locks out.


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## smiler (Aug 21, 2015)

krela said:


> Interesting Sazza thank you. Am I right in thinking that many of the tin churches were Baptist? I can't remember offhand.


Either that or Methodist, mostly Methodist here in Cornwall, Many of the window frames were recycled from disused engine houses.


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## krela (Aug 22, 2015)

smiler said:


> Either that or Methodist, mostly Methodist here in Cornwall, Many of the window frames were recycled from disused engine houses.



I'm completely wrong, a few were baptist and methodist but the majority were anglican. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tin_tabernacle

Sorry to hijack your report Rubex!


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## Rubex (Aug 22, 2015)

Thank you everyone for the information you've given me on this place and Baptist churches in general  I really do enjoy the educational side of this forum aswell!


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## Dirus_Strictus (Aug 22, 2015)

As with many Baptist and Methodist Chapels, the foundation date does not relate to the laying of a foundation stone or consecration of a building - it more likely relates to the year a group of like people got together with the intention of raising money to start and build their own place of worship. Here in Rawdon one Chapel was built by a group of people, who after leaving the C of E and forming a local Methodist congregation, used to worship in the open air standing around and on a well known outcrop of rocks and boulders. Illustrations of the wooden chairs with the hymn book holders can be found in many Church Furnisher's catalogues from the period 1900 to 1930 - the one time span I have personally seen. It appears that the lighter stained examples most likely come from the 1930's and later, early examples always appear to be dark oak stained.


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## krela (Aug 22, 2015)

Dirus_Strictus said:


> Illustrations of the wooden chairs with the hymn book holders can be found in many Church Furnisher's catalogues from the period 1900 to 1930 - the one time span I have personally seen. It appears that the lighter stained examples most likely come from the 1930's and later, early examples always appear to be dark oak stained.



Indeed, I believe they were available right up until the 1970s, and could also be purchased with the addition of a flip out prayer kneeling pad on the underside.


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