The United Reformed Church is a former United Reformed Church in Chiswell, on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. It was founded in 1825 and closed in 2009. [1]
The United Reformed Church is a former United Reformed Church in Chiswell, on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. It was founded in 1825 and closed in 2009. [1]
The United Reformed Church was founded in 1825 when the people of Chiswell, the oldest settlement on the island, banded together to convert a barn and stable into a place of worship. By 1827, Chiswell had to accommodate the growing congregation and as a result the first chapel was built during 1827–28. [2] The church flourished under the guidance of the Rev JH Crump. The first pastor appointed to Portland was the Rev Frederick William Meadows. The next pastor, Rev C Cannon, died in office in 1854, whilst in those years the building had become too small for the growing congregation. [3]
As the building was not large enough for the local congregation, a new church opened on the same site. Rev James Cheney, described in the church records as "a remarkable, resourceful and skilful man", was the guiding light for the building that stands in Chiswell today, which was opened by 21 October 1858. [4] The church was first known as the Independent Chapel, as well as the Union Chapel, then the Congregational Church. [2] It became known as the United Reformed Church in 1972.
However, by the 21st century, the numbers in the congregation had dramatically dropped. Seven local people decided to team together in an attempt to the keep the church open by dealing with administration and fund raising. Despite various attempts by the congregation to save it, the church's final service was held on 27 September 2009, conducted by the Rev Bob Damer. [3] Although the building's future was uncertain, renovations have begun. [5]
The Isle of Portland is a tied island, 6 kilometres (4 mi) long by 2.7 kilometres (1.7 mi) wide, in the English Channel. The southern tip, Portland Bill lies 8 kilometres (5 mi) south of the resort of Weymouth, forming the southernmost point of the county of Dorset, England. A barrier beach called Chesil Beach joins Portland with mainland England. The A354 road passes down the Portland end of the beach and then over the Fleet Lagoon by bridge to the mainland. The population of Portland is 13,417.
Fortuneswell is a village in Underhill on the Isle of Portland, in Dorset, England. It lies on steeply sloping land on the northern edge of the island, known as Underhill, where Chesil Beach connects the island to the mainland. Adjoining Fortuneswell are Chiswell to the west and Castletown to the north. Fortuneswell occupies the steeper land above sea level, whereas Chiswell and Castletown occupy flat land close to sea level, next to Chesil Beach and Portland Harbour respectively. Fortuneswell has a main shopping street, and along with Easton, is the main hub of the island's activities.
The Cathedral of Hope (CoH), a member congregation of the United Church of Christ, is an historically and predominantly LGBT congregation located in the Oak Lawn area of Dallas, Texas, in the United States. The Dallas Cathedral of Hope is said to be the world's largest inclusive "liberal Christian church with a primary outreach to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons", with a membership of over 4,000 local members.
Chiswell, sometimes, is a small village at the southern end of Chesil Beach, in Underhill, on the Isle of Portland in Dorset. It is the oldest settlement on the island, having formerly been known as Chesilton. The small bay at Chiswell is called Chesil Cove, and the beach promenade and sea wall which form Chiswell's coastal defences are a prominent feature.
Avenue St. Andrew's is a United Reformed Church in Southampton, England. Part of the church building is Grade II listed.
Trinity Congregational Church, later known as Union Chapel, is a former place of worship for Congregationalists and Independent Christians in Arundel, an ancient town in the Arun district of West Sussex, England. Protestant Nonconformism has always been strong in the town, and the chapel's founding congregation emerged in the 1780s. After worshipping elsewhere in the town, they founded the present building in the 1830s and remained for many years. Former pastors included the poet George MacDonald. Robert Abraham's distinctive neo-Norman/Romanesque Revival building was converted into a market in the 1980s and has been renamed Nineveh House. The church is a Grade II Listed building.
Bethel Strict Baptist Chapel is a former place of worship for Strict Baptists in Robertsbridge, a village in the district of Rother in the English county of East Sussex. Partly hidden behind ancient buildings on the village High Street, the simple brick chapel was erected in 1842 on the initiative of James Weller, a "somewhat remarkable man" whose preaching had attracted large audiences across Kent and East Sussex in the previous decade. The Strict Baptist cause was historically strong in East Sussex, and Protestant Nonconformism thrived in Robertsbridge, which was distant from the nearest Anglican parish church. The chapel closed in about 1999, and permission was granted for its conversion into a house. English Heritage has designated it a Grade II Listed building.
Chiswell Earthworks is a land sculpture, located on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. It is found above Chesil Beach's most southerly part Chesil Cove, at the end of the promenade sea wall, towards West Weares. It was created by John Maine RA, between 1986 and 1993.
Chiswell Walled Garden is a community walled garden, located on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. It is found in the village of Chiswell, close to Chesil Beach, within the remaining ruins of an old Jacobean house. The garden was created between 2001-06 by the Chiswell Community Trust, with funding from Countryside Agency under their Doorstep Green Initiative. It is maintained by volunteer members of the trust and is open to the public.
The Cove House Inn is an 18th-century public house on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. It is situated within the village of Chiswell, and alongside Chesil Beach on the esplanade. The Cove House Inn remains one of Portland's most popular pubs, and has been reputed to be one of the best inns for panoramic views in the area. The pub has been a Grade II Listed Building since May 1993.
Underhill Methodist Church is a Methodist Church, opened in 1899, located in Fortuneswell, on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. It was built between 1898 and 1899, replacing a 1793 chapel built by Robert Carr Brackenbury, the founder of Methodism on Portland. The church remains active to date, as part of the Portland Methodist Circuit, alongside Easton Methodist Church.
Conjurers Lodge is a former Methodist chapel and workshop on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. It is located on the corner of Clements Lane within the village of Chiswell. Established in 1816, the chapel was in use for a decade. The lodge has been Grade II Listed since 1993 and is described as a "rare surviving example of its kind" on the island.
Victoria Square is a public square on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. Developed in the 19th century, it is situated at the entrance to Portland, close to Chesil Beach, Osprey Quay, and the small fishing village of Chiswell.
Central Presbyterian Church is a historic congregation on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City, founded by pastor and abolitionist William Patton in 1821. It is a member of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church, and it worships in a Gothic Revival structure completed in 1922 that was originally commissioned and largely funded by John D. Rockefeller Jr. as Park Avenue Baptist Church.
The building formerly known as Park Lane Chapel is a former Strict Baptist chapel in the ancient town of Farnham in Surrey, England. Now a house, it was in religious use for nearly 150 years and housed a congregation whose origins go back to informal meetings in the 1840s. After Nisan Samuel, a Polish Jew, arrived in England and converted to Christianity, he took charge of these ad hoc meetings and formalised them into a Strict Baptist church. After he moved on, the congregation bought land and built a chapel. The small stone and brick building has been listed at Grade II for its architectural and historical importance.
The United Reformed Church is a former United Reformed Church in Upwey, Dorset, England. It was built in 1880–81 and closed in 1992, with the building now under private ownership.
The Johannesburg Reformed Church was the first congregation of the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa (NGK) to be founded in Johannesburg on August 14, 1887. All the congregations on the Witwatersrand stem from it, but by the 2010s, the NGK yearbook recorded only 90 in its ward which had long ceased to operate independently.
Robertson Street Congregational Church is a former United Reformed church in the centre of Hastings, a seaside town and borough in East Sussex, England. Built in 1885 on the site of an earlier church which had been constructed in 1857, it was designed by Henry Ward (1854–1927), who was responsible for many of the key buildings in the town of Hastings, not least the Town Hall. The building, a "large urban ... church with richly detailed exteriors and interiors", is situated between Robertson Street and Cambridge Road and has a split-level arrangement with part of the gallery occupying a flying freehold over the alleyway adjacent to the entrance on Robertson Street. The church is listed at Grade II for its architectural and historical importance.
Hope United Reformed Church is a United Reformed Church in Weymouth, Dorset, England. It was built in 1861–62 and has been a Grade II listed building since 1974.
The Weybridge United Reformed Church situate at Queen's Road, Weybridge, near to its junction with York Road, is a Victorian Grade II Listed church building that is now no longer used as a place of worship.
50°33′35″N2°26′49″W / 50.5598°N 2.4470°W
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