Todmorden Unitarian Church
Encyclopedia
Todmorden Unitarian Church is a formerly redundant
Unitarian
church standing in Honey Hole Road, Todmorden
, West Yorkshire
, England , now holding services again. It occupies an elevated position overlooking the town. It has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Historic Chapels Trust.
, a local mill owner and a social reformer, who later became a Member of Parliament
. Because of his work, Fielden has been nicknamed "Honest John". The Unitarians built their first chapel and school in 1823 and the congregation steadily increased in size. Fielden died in 1849. After his death the Unitarian community continued to grow and the chapel became inadequate for their needs. In 1865 building of a new church started. This was built in memory of John Fielden and paid for by his three sons, Joshua, John (junior) and Samuel. It was built on land they owned at Honey Hole. "Money was no object to these brothers" and the resulting building, costing over £35,000 (£ as of ), was large and splendid, and was built using the best quality materials. The church was completed in 1869 and at its opening service in April of that year the first sermon
was preached to a congregation of 800 by William Gaskell
, widower of the novelist Elizabeth Gaskell
. A lodge (or gatehouse) was built at the same time as the church.
. Gibson had previously worked for the Fielden family and had designed Dobroyd Castle
for John Fielden (junior) on the opposite side of the valley. It is constructed in stone with a slate
roof. Its plan consists of a seven-bay
nave
with aisle
s, transept
s, a single-bay chancel
, a porch, and a large tower with a spire. It is in Gothic
style. At the west end is an elaborate rose window
and at the east end is a five-light window. The nave windows have two lights with traceried
heads. Along the nave wall are buttresses and a string course carved with flowers. The tower is in three stages with angle buttress
es and two-light bell openings. Its lowest stage forms an open porch. On top of the tower are pinnacle
s and an octagonal spire containing tall lucarne
s. Internally the arcades
consist of pointed arches carried on Devon
shire marble
columns.
and have poppyheads
. The pulpit
is constructed in differing coloured marbles. The font
has a carved white marble bowl. In the chancel window is stained glass by Jean-Baptiste Capronnier
of Belgium
that depicts scenes from the life of Christ. There are memorial tablets to the founders of the church in the aisles. Also in the aisles are gas brackets that have been converted to electricity, and there are candelabra
s in the choir stalls. The ring
consists of eight bells, all cast in 1868 by Mears and Stainbank of the Whitechapel Bell Foundry
. Also in the tower is a clock and a carillon
.
, the umbrella organisation for British Unitarians.
and his wife Becky Simpson
who are members of the local church management committee. It is in a single storey and constructed in stone with a slate roof. Its plan is T-shaped, the projecting wing having two steep gable
s, a Gothic-style doorway, and a canted
bay window
. The original Unitarian chapel and Sunday school in Wellfield Terrace is also listed Grade II. It also has a burial ground, and this contains the grave of John Fielden.
Redundant church
A redundant church is a church building that is no longer required for regular public worship. The phrase is particularly used to refer to former Anglican buildings in the United Kingdom, but may refer to any disused church building around the world...
Unitarian
Unitarianism
Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism which defines God as three persons coexisting consubstantially as one in being....
church standing in Honey Hole Road, Todmorden
Todmorden
Todmorden is a market town and civil parish, located 17 miles from Manchester, within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale, in West Yorkshire, England. It forms part of the Upper Calder Valley and has a total population of 14,941....
, West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
, England , now holding services again. It occupies an elevated position overlooking the town. It has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Historic Chapels Trust.
Early history
The Unitarian movement originated in Todmorden in the early 19th century, and one of their prominent members was John FieldenJohn Fielden
John Fielden , also known as Honest John Fielden, was a British social reformer and benefactor. He was the third son of Joshua Fielden, and began working in his father's mill at the age of 9. With his brothers, he expanded the family cotton business at Todmorden to become a wealthy businessman...
, a local mill owner and a social reformer, who later became a Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
. Because of his work, Fielden has been nicknamed "Honest John". The Unitarians built their first chapel and school in 1823 and the congregation steadily increased in size. Fielden died in 1849. After his death the Unitarian community continued to grow and the chapel became inadequate for their needs. In 1865 building of a new church started. This was built in memory of John Fielden and paid for by his three sons, Joshua, John (junior) and Samuel. It was built on land they owned at Honey Hole. "Money was no object to these brothers" and the resulting building, costing over £35,000 (£ as of ), was large and splendid, and was built using the best quality materials. The church was completed in 1869 and at its opening service in April of that year the first sermon
Sermon
A sermon is an oration by a prophet or member of the clergy. Sermons address a Biblical, theological, religious, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law or behavior within both past and present contexts...
was preached to a congregation of 800 by William Gaskell
William Gaskell
The Reverend William Gaskell was an English Unitarian minister, charity worker and pioneer in the education of the working class...
, widower of the novelist Elizabeth Gaskell
Elizabeth Gaskell
Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell, née Stevenson , often referred to simply as Mrs Gaskell, was a British novelist and short story writer during the Victorian era...
. A lodge (or gatehouse) was built at the same time as the church.
Structure
The church was designed by John GibsonJohn Gibson (architect)
John Gibson was an English architect born in Warwickshire.Gibson was an assistant to Sir Charles Barry and assisted him in the drawings of the Houses of Parliament....
. Gibson had previously worked for the Fielden family and had designed Dobroyd Castle
Dobroyd castle
Dobroyd Castle is an important historic building above the town of Todmorden, West Yorkshire, England. It was built for John Fielden, local mill owner and son of Honest John Fielden the Social Reformer and MP.The building has had a varied past...
for John Fielden (junior) on the opposite side of the valley. It is constructed in stone with a slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
roof. Its plan consists of a seven-bay
Bay (architecture)
A bay is a unit of form in architecture. This unit is defined as the zone between the outer edges of an engaged column, pilaster, or post; or within a window frame, doorframe, or vertical 'bas relief' wall form.-Defining elements:...
nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
with aisle
Aisle
An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of seats on both sides or with rows of seats on one side and a wall on the other...
s, transept
Transept
For the periodical go to The Transept.A transept is a transverse section, of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In Christian churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform building in Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architecture...
s, a single-bay chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
, a porch, and a large tower with a spire. It is in Gothic
English Gothic architecture
English Gothic is the name of the architectural style that flourished in England from about 1180 until about 1520.-Introduction:As with the Gothic architecture of other parts of Europe, English Gothic is defined by its pointed arches, vaulted roofs, buttresses, large windows, and spires...
style. At the west end is an elaborate rose window
Rose window
A Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in churches of the Gothic architectural style and being divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery...
and at the east end is a five-light window. The nave windows have two lights with traceried
Tracery
In architecture, Tracery is the stonework elements that support the glass in a Gothic window. The term probably derives from the 'tracing floors' on which the complex patterns of late Gothic windows were laid out.-Plate tracery:...
heads. Along the nave wall are buttresses and a string course carved with flowers. The tower is in three stages with angle buttress
Buttress
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall...
es and two-light bell openings. Its lowest stage forms an open porch. On top of the tower are pinnacle
Pinnacle
A pinnacle is an architectural ornament originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire...
s and an octagonal spire containing tall lucarne
Lucarne
A lucarne is a small dormer window that is built on a spire or roof during the Gothic and Romanesque time period....
s. Internally the arcades
Arcade (architecture)
An arcade is a succession of arches, each counterthrusting the next, supported by columns or piers or a covered walk enclosed by a line of such arches on one or both sides. In warmer or wet climates, exterior arcades provide shelter for pedestrians....
consist of pointed arches carried on Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
shire marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
columns.
Fittings and furniture
The choir stalls and pews are carved with traceryTracery
In architecture, Tracery is the stonework elements that support the glass in a Gothic window. The term probably derives from the 'tracing floors' on which the complex patterns of late Gothic windows were laid out.-Plate tracery:...
and have poppyheads
Poppyhead (carving)
Poppyhead is a form of carving of the end of a bench or a choir stall. The carving consists of leaves and flowers, which are usually in the form of a fleur-de-lys....
. The pulpit
Pulpit
Pulpit is a speakers' stand in a church. In many Christian churches, there are two speakers' stands at the front of the church. Typically, the one on the left is called the pulpit...
is constructed in differing coloured marbles. The font
Baptismal font
A baptismal font is an article of church furniture or a fixture used for the baptism of children and adults.-Aspersion and affusion fonts:...
has a carved white marble bowl. In the chancel window is stained glass by Jean-Baptiste Capronnier
Jean-Baptiste Capronnier
Jean-Baptiste Capronnier was a Belgian stained glass painter. Born in Brussels in 1814, he had much to do with the modern revival of glass-painting, and first made his reputation by his study of the old methods of workmanship, and his clever restorations of old examples, and copies made for the...
of Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
that depicts scenes from the life of Christ. There are memorial tablets to the founders of the church in the aisles. Also in the aisles are gas brackets that have been converted to electricity, and there are candelabra
Candelabra
"Candelabra" is the traditional term for a set of multiple decorative candlesticks, each of which often holds a candle on each of multiple arms or branches connected to a column or pedestal...
s in the choir stalls. The ring
Ring of bells
"Ring of bells" is a term most often applied to a set of bells hung in the English style, typically for change ringing...
consists of eight bells, all cast in 1868 by Mears and Stainbank of the Whitechapel Bell Foundry
Whitechapel Bell Foundry
The Whitechapel Bell Foundry is a bell foundry in Whitechapel in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, in the East End of London. The foundry is listed by the Guinness Book of Records as the oldest manufacturing company in Great Britain...
. Also in the tower is a clock and a carillon
Carillon
A carillon is a musical instrument that is typically housed in a free-standing bell tower, or the belfry of a church or other municipal building. The instrument consists of at least 23 cast bronze, cup-shaped bells, which are played serially to play a melody, or sounded together to play a chord...
.
Later history and present day
The Unitarian congregation continued to thrive into the 20th century but, as the century progressed, its size declined and it became increasingly difficult to raise funds to keep the church going. It finally closed in 1987. Services continued to be held in the lodge, but these ended in 1992. After the church closed its fabric deteriorated due to a combination of decay and vandalism. It was acquired in 1994 by the Historic Chapels Trust. The Trust has carried out a £1 million programme of repairs. These have included repair of the church roofs, stained glass, clock and carillon, restoration of the lodge and the interior of the tower, and the installation of a new heating system, toilets and kitchen. The surrounding historic landscape, including the burial ground, have also been restored. Services began again in 2008 and continue. The church is licensed for weddings. The church is still listed as a member of the General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian ChurchesGeneral Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches
The General Assembly of Unitarian and Free Christian Churches is the umbrella organisation for Unitarian, Free Christian and other liberal religious congregations in the United Kingdom. It was formed in 1928, with denominational roots going back to the Great Ejection of 1662...
, the umbrella organisation for British Unitarians.
Associated features
The church is set on a steep slope, surrounded by ornamental gardens, and has a wooded, landscaped burial ground. The lodge associated with the church is a Grade II listed building, currently occupied by Wes PaulWes Paul
Wester Paul Gerrard is an English guitarist and singer.Wes Paul grew up in Lodge Lane, Liverpool. Between 13 November 2005 and 2 September 2007 he was the stage manager and compère of Sounds of the Sixties Cavern Showcase which ran every Sunday at The Cavern Club, Liverpool...
and his wife Becky Simpson
Becky Simpson
Becky Simpson is a Manchester-born actress, writer and musician who now lives in the Calderdale area of West Yorkshire. In 1997, Simpson won the BBC Talkie of the Year award for her role in Spoonface Steinberg.- Personal life :...
who are members of the local church management committee. It is in a single storey and constructed in stone with a slate roof. Its plan is T-shaped, the projecting wing having two steep gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
s, a Gothic-style doorway, and a canted
Cant (architecture)
Cant is the architectural term describing part, or segment, of a facade which is at an angle to another part of the same facade. The angle breaking the facade is less than a right angle thus enabling a canted facade to be viewed as, and remain, one composition.Canted facades are a typical of, but...
bay window
Bay window
A bay window is a window space projecting outward from the main walls of a building and forming a bay in a room, either square or polygonal in plan. The angles most commonly used on the inside corners of the bay are 90, 135 and 150 degrees. Bay windows are often associated with Victorian architecture...
. The original Unitarian chapel and Sunday school in Wellfield Terrace is also listed Grade II. It also has a burial ground, and this contains the grave of John Fielden.
See also
- Grade I listed buildings in West Yorkshire
- List of chapels preserved by the Historic Chapels Trust