Central Quaker Meeting House

Last updated

Central Quaker Meeting House
Central Quaker Meeting House - DSC 0016.jpg
Central Quaker Meeting House in 2025
Central Quaker Meeting House
51°27′29″N2°34′57″W / 51.45816°N 2.58239°W / 51.45816; -2.58239
AddressChampion Square, St Jude's, Bristol BS2 9DB
CountryEngland
Denomination Religious Society of Friends
Religious institute Bristol Area Meeting
History
Former name(s)Friars Meeting House
Founded1962
Architecture
Functional statusActive

Central Quaker Meeting House is a purpose-built Quaker meeting house in Champion Square, [note 1] St Jude's, Bristol, England. Completed in 1962 to replace the 18th-century Quakers Friars meeting house, it remains the principal place of worship for Central Bristol Quakers and is regularly used for community welfare projects. [1]

Contents

History

Background

Bristol's first purpose-designed meeting house was erected in 1670 on the former Dominican friary site now known as Quakers Friars. That building was replaced in 1747–49 by a larger classical meeting house which served the Quakers until the mid-20th century, when Bristol City Council acquired the premises for redevelopment of Broadmead as the city's new shopping district. [2] In 1956, Bristol Friends accepted municipal compensation and began planning the new meeting house on River Street. [3]

Design and construction

Work on the new building was nearing completion by April 1962. [4] The meeting house occupies the former burial ground, cleared in 1932, and stands next to the Grade II listed Quaker workhouse, now the New Street Flats. It is an L-shaped, single-storey building faced in buff brick with a pantile roof; the main range contains the meeting room, ancillary spaces and a small courtyard garden. [5] The building was formally opened on 5 May 1962. [1]

Subsequent development

Minor internal alterations to improve access were undertaken in 1994–95, and refurbishment in 2014–15. [5] Since 2017 its hall has accommodated a part of the 365 night shelter for rough sleepers, while during the COVID-19 pandemic it functioned as a field kitchen supplying daily meals to homeless people housed in emergency hotel accommodation. [6] [7]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Since redevelopment of River Street in conjunction with the Cabot Circus development, the meeting house was re-addressed to Champion Square.

References

  1. 1 2 "Quakers open new meeting hall". Bristol Evening Post . 7 May 1962. p. 2. Retrieved 4 July 2025– via Newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ Simpson, Margaret H. (1955). "Bristol Friends and the Friars Meeting House". Journal of the Friends Historical Society. 47: 17–34.
  3. ↑ Mortimer, Russell (1967). Early Bristol Quakerism: The Society of Friends in the City 1654-1700 (PDF). Local History Pamphlets. Bristol Branch of the Historical Association. p. 22.
  4. ↑ Thomas, A. H. R. (7 April 1962). "A new home: Quakers' premises open soon". Bristol Evening Post . p. 4. Retrieved 4 July 2025– via Newspapers.com.
  5. 1 2 Derrick, Andrew (18 August 2017). Friends Meeting House, Central Bristol: Historic Building Record (Report). Architectural History Practice. pp. 3–6. doi:10.5284/1041062.
  6. ↑ "Central Bristol Quakers feed homeless". Quakers in Britain . 2 April 2020. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
  7. ↑ "Why I volunteer at the 365 shelter". St Mungo's . 21 November 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.