CHAPTER XIII .

atonconrormifp in (R.ochdafc .

ANCASHIRE, in the time of Queen Elizabeth, was oneof the most catholic counties in England, and in Rochdalethe vicar (John Hampson) in 1561 was in all probabilitydeprived of his living for recusancy .

During the longvicariate of Richard Midgley Roman Catholicism appearsto have rapidly died out in the parish and puritanism taken

its place, the vicar (as also his successor) having strong sympathy withthat party .

The puritans of Lancashire still continued to be churchmen .In 1646 Robert Bath, vicar of Rochdale, became a member of the

second Presbyterian classis at Bury, and subsequently in every wayallied himself to that party, so that in 1662 1 his conscience not allow-ing him to conform, he was ejected, and from that year we may datethe rise of nonconformity in this parish .

In the second classis, besides the vicar there were the followingfrom Rochdale :-Edward Butterworth of Belfield, Esq . ; James Stott ofHealey, Esq. ; Robert Pares, gentleman ; John Scolfeld of Castleton,yeoman ; Emanuel Thompson, clothier, and Samuel Wylde, mercer.2

After his ejection Robert Bath is said to have preached in asecluded spot called Underhill, but subsequently he went to live atDeeplish Hill, where he gathered around him a few of his old con-gregation who thus formed the nucleus of the first dissenting body inRochdale . The house for several centuries known as Deeplish orDeepleach Hill was never a place of much importance, neither wasit (as some have described it) a small cottage . In 1 554 " Depelayche-hyll " was leased to and in the occupation of Edward Brerelye andIsabel his wife, and Robert Holt of Stublye, by his will (dated that

'Zachary Taylor his curate was also ejected .

2 See Gravestone, p . 163.

NONCONFORMITY IN ROCHDALE .

251

year), left the reversion of it to Richard Holt, who no doubt eventuallywent to live there . In 1628 a child of Roger Holt of Deepleach Hillwas buried at the parish church, and in 1640 was baptized Robert theson of Richard Holt of Deepelish Hill . Another of the family wasJohn Holt of Deeplishill whose will was proved at Chester 1st February,I66o.1 In 1668 Robert Bath was here2 and remained until hisdeath in 1674.3

Before entering upon the history of the various nonconformistchapels, it will be as well to look at the religious state of the variousparts of the parish as recorded by bishop Gastrell in the year 1717 .In the town of Rochdale there were no papists and about two hundreddissenters (who had a meeting house) ; in Littleborough there werefour dissenting families ; in Milnrow there were four Presbyterians andone quaker ; in Todmorden twenty presbyterians, fifty quakers andthirty anabaptists ; and in Whitworth there were nineteen Presbyterianfamilies .4

BLACKWATER STREET CHAPEL .This chapel was built in 1717 on a plot of ground given by John

Smithurst, yeoman, which was known as Colepitt Garden. On the17th October in that year the building was registered in general termsas "a meeting place for an assembly of protestants dissenting fromthe church of England ." There was however a meeting house in Roch-dale in 1672, and tradition says that it was at Lower Gates, and thatthe name Amen Corner was used in derision .

[See Chap. XVI .]The exact date of the opening of this meeting house can be fixed

to within a few months, from the diary of Oliver Heywood, whofrequently visited Rochdale between 1666 and 1671, when he preachedat the houses of Mathew Hallows and J . Hardman and at ChadwickHall . On 17th September, 1671, he preached at Hardman's, but onSunday, 7th July, 1672, he records that he was at " Ratchdale andpreacht in their meeting house there" and that he "had a mightyauditory, much assistance [and] hopes of good ."

In 169o the parish church registers record that James the son ofThomas Dawson had been "baptized at the meeting house," and about1695 Celia Fiennes [see p. 8], having visited the town, writes "here

- He left 630 to his brother Richard. His wife Ann survived him .

2 Manor Roll, 1668 .3 In the next century James Royds, son of John Royds of Wardle, lived here.

4 Not. Cest .

252

HISTORY OF THE PARISH OF ROCHDALE .

I . went to an acquaintance, Mr. Taylor, and was civilly entertained .Here is a good large meeting place well filled. In these partsreligion does better flourish than in places where they have betteradvantages ; here I observed the grounds were all enclosed with quick-setts cut smoothe and as even as one fine grown bank and as wellkept as for a garden." Jane Whitworth, in her will dated 3rdJanuary, 1704, left property for the preaching of lectures in this meet-ing house. The old chapel was enlarged in 1752 and continued in useuntil 1856 when the present building was erected . Although originallya Presbyterian place of worship, in the course of time it graduallybecame the recognized chapel of the Unitarians .

THE MINISTERS OF BLACKWATER STREET CHAPEL.

HENRY PENDLEBURY was born at Jokin in the parish of Bury 6thMay, 1626 ; he took an M.A. degree at Christ church, Cambridge . Hisfirst sermon was preached at Ashworth chapel on 16th August, 1648 .In October, 165o, he was "invested in the ministerial office" by RobertBath, Tobias Furness, and other puritan divines ; he was afterwards suc-cessively minister of Horwich near Bolton and Holcombe in the parishof Bury, from the latter place he was ejected in 1662 and for some yearsled a wandering life . , The exact date of his becoming "the minister ofthe gospel at Rochdale" is unknown, but it was probably on the openingof the first meeting house . He died 18th June, 1695, in his seventiethyear, nd was interred in the churchyard of Bury,2 where there wasformerly a tombstone to his memory . Henry Pendlebury was a man ofconsiderable learning and ability . He was the author of the followingworks, only one of which was published during his life

"A Plain Representation of the Transubstantiation as it is received in the Church ofRome, &c." London, 1687 ,'

" Invisible Realities the real Christian's greatest Concernment," &c .

London, 1696.[On the title page the author is called "Late minister of the gospel at Rochdale ."]

"The Barren Fig Tree," &c . London, 1700 ."Sacrificium Missaticum, Mysterium Iniquitatis ; or, a Treatise concerning the Sacrifice

of the Mass." London, 1768 ."Sermons by Henry Pendlebury of Rochdale," 1711 ."The Book opened," &c . London, 1811 .

' It is said that the Bass Lane chapel in Bury was built for him in 1664.

' Sacrificium Missaticum.s Published anonymously under the direction of Archbishop Tillotson .

NONCONFORMITY IN ROCHDALE.

253

JOSEPH DAWSON was one of the four sons , of the Rev. Joseph Dawson,who was ejected from Thornton chapel near Halifax ; he was ordainedfor the ministry at Rauthmell in Yorkshire, 7th June, 1693 .2 He marrieda daughter of the Rev . Thomas Dixon, an ejected minister fromK elloe in Durham. For a short time he was minister at Hartforth nearRichmond in Yorkshire, from whence he came in 1698 or 1699 to Roch-dale, where he remained until his death on 15th April, 1739 . OliverHeywood calls him a "very worthy good man," and adds that he hadpreached at Rochdale for forty year . One of his daughters married theRev. Richard Scholefield of Whitworth [see Hall Fold chapel] .

JOSIAH OWEN 3 is believed to have been a grandson of John Owenof Abernaut near Carmarthen, in North Wales, and nephew to Dr. CharlesOwen of Warrington, whose funeral sermon he preached on 23rd Febru-ary, 1745-6, and which he dedicated to his "much honoured cousins"the children of the deceased . Charles Owen was one of nine children,all of whom were dissenters ; he was the biographer of his brother,James Owen, "minister of the gospel in Salop," who died in 1706, andwho possibly was the father of Josiah Owen.4 The first appointment ofJosiah Owen was to Bridgenorth, which he resigned in 1735 ; he wasafterwards minister of Walsall and Stone in Staffordshire, and in or about174o he came to Rochdale, where he appears to have plunged into theparty turmoil then raging in Manchester and district, and to have becomea recognised leader of the Whigs . His controversy with Thomas Deaconand John Byrom is well known ; his attack on the religious teaching ofthe former in "A Letter to the Master-Tool [Byrom] of the Faction atManchester," was at once witty and vigorous, and a well-deserved rejoinderto Byrom's "Epistle to a Friend," in which he had the following allusionto Owen

"Leave to the low-bred O-ns of the ageSense to belye and loyally to rage ;Wit to make treason of each cry and chat,And eyes to see false worship in a hat ."

This reference to the hat is explained by a note in one of Owen'ssermons, in which (quoting from the "Manchester Weekly Magazine,"

' All of whom were ministers.

- Christian Reformer, xii ., 354-3 It has been stated that Richard Scholefield succeeded Dawson. This is not so-he was at Whitworth .

(See Hall Fold chapel .]I Account of the Life and Writings of Mr . James Owen . London, 17og .

254

HISTORY OF THE PARISH OF ROCHDALE .

23rd September, 1746) he says that Dr. Deacon and some of his con-gregation had been seen to take off their hats and make a bow, "withgreat reverence," on passing the Manchester Exchange, where the headsof certain rebels had been fixed . Owen again refers to this in his ser-mon preached at Rochdale on the thanksgiving day after the rebellion ;he writes, "It is one of my principles that showing religious honours torebels' skulls is false worship in the christian sense, but true nonjuringand Jacobite devotion ." Another of his sermons, entitled "NationalGratitude," was preached "to a Society of Protestant Dissenters at Roch-dale, November 5th, 1742 ." In this, after exhorting his hearers to submitto the authorities, he urges them not to "be forward to censure measureswherewith you have no proper opportunities of being acquainted, for,"he adds, "the most ignorant are the most forward to censure. The mostblind are the most bold, and think it easier to govern kingdoms thanthey find it to be to govern their own tongues . Wou'd it not lead astranger to imagine that we were a nation of privy counsellors and patriots,that we were born statesmen and sucked in politics from our nurses ."

Josiah Owen died in December, 1752. Of his personal historynothing is known . He was the author of the following

"National Gratitude," &c ., a Sermon preached at Rochdale 5th November, 1 742 .Manchester, 1742,

"The Song of Deborah apply'd to the Battle of Dettingen ." London, 1753 ."The Christian's Conflict and Crown," a Sermon preached at Warrington . [On death

of Rev. Charles Owen, D.D.]"The End of all Perfection, a Sermon preach'd at Rochdale June 29th, 1746, on

occasion of the most lamented death of Mr . James Hardman." London, 1741 ."All is well ; or, the Defeat of the late Rebellion, a Sermon preach'd at Rochdale

October 9th [1746] ." London, 1746 ."Remarks on Two Charges deliver'd by Dr . Smallbroke, late Bishop of Lichfield and

Coventry ." Second edition, 1759 ."The Difficulties and Discouragements that attend the Dissenting Ministry .""Jacobite and Nonjuring Principles freely examined, in a Letter to the Master-Tool

of the Faction at Manchester." Manchester, 1748 ."Dr. Deacon try'd before his own Tribunal ; or, an Examination of the several Facts

deny'd by him in the Gentleman's Magazine ." London, 1748 .

THOMAS HOPKINS succeeded Josiah Owen ; he was only here ashort time ; he died 9th August, 1754, and was buried in the southaisle of the chapel . Before coming to Rochdale he was at Middlewichand Northwich in Cheshire . ,

'Christian Reformer, xii., 355 .

NONCONFORMITY IN ROCHDALE.

255

R. BOLTON followed Mr. Hopkins but we have not been able toobtain any information about him except that he died at Rochdale in1772 .

WILLIAM HASSALL came to the chapel, when quite a young man,in 1773 . He only retained the charge until 1776, when he retired andopened a school in the town . In 179o he purchased Balderstone Hall[see Chap. XVI .], which he utilised as a boarding school . He died6th February, 1829.

WILLIAM COOK was here from 1776 to 1778 . He came fromPreston and after leaving Rochdale went to London.

THOMAS THRELKELD was born 12th April, 1739, at Halifax, wherehis father was a presbyterian minister. His first ministry was at Risleynear Warrington, where he married Miss Martha Wright . In 1778 heremoved to Rochdale, where, after twenty-eight years of ministerial work,he died, 6th April, 1806, and was buried in his chapel near the pulpit

•

stairs . , His funeral sermon was preached by the Rev . Thomas Barnes,D .D., fellow of the American Philosophical Society.2 Mr. Threlkeld, inaddition to being a linguist with a knowledge of nine or ten languages,was remarkable for his wonderful memory. Dr. Barnes says that "hismind appeared to be divided and fitted up like a shop furnished withshelves and drawers for every different kind of article, so that everynew article was referred to its own place and so joined with thosewhich stood there before, and the whole row presented itself at oncelike soldiers drawn up in line." His taste seems to have beenomnivorous, but chronology, history, heraldry, genealogy, biblical know-

•

ledge and the study of languages were his chief delights ; he is said to•

have been a living concordance . He was of a most retiring disposition,•

and so short-sighted that he dare not ride on horseback because from•

the saddle he could not see the ground. It is somewhat remarkable•

that notwithstanding all his requirements he invariably read his sermons .3WILLIAM MARSHALL from Loughborough was the next minister .

He remained from i8o6 to i8ro.RICHARD ASTLEY was born in 1785 and came to this chapel in

i8io. He only stayed two years and then went to Halifax . (1813,•

there was no minister here.)

Formerly there was an inscribed stone to his memory .•

' Published 18o6. From this the above details are taken .•

3 See Local Notes and Queries, Manchester Guardian, 27th April, 1874,

256

HISTORY OF THE PARISH OF ROCHDALE.

GILBERT ELLIOTT officiated from 1814 to 1826 when he removedto Prescot, where he died. Whilst at Rochdale he lived at OakenrodHall .

FRANKLIN HOWARTH held the appointment in or about the year1826 . His trinitarian views not suiting the congregation he resignedin 1832 and was afterwards minister of the Silver street chapel, Bury .

GEORGE HEAVYSIDE was minister from 1832 to the time of hisdeath in 1840 . He was buried in the chapel yard .

GEORGE WINCHESTER PHILP, 1840 to 1842 . He also became atrinitarian. Dr. Molesworth (the vicar) made his baptism the subject ofa sermon .

WILLIAM SMITH was appointed in 1843 and remained until 1859 .During his ministry the present chapel was built . He was succeeded by

P. C. CLAYDEN who only remained a few months .S. F . MACDONALD was appointed in 186o and died in 1862 .JAMES PILLARS was minister in 1863 . In 1864 he went to Sydney,

New South Wales, where he died in 1875 .T. H. SMITH followed Mr. Pillars in 1864 . He resigned in 1866

and went to Halifax ; he died in 1873 .The REV. THOMAS CARTER is the present minister .

UNITARIAN CHAPEL (CLOVER STREET) .

This congregation arose from a secession from High street chapel .[See p. 260.] It was built in 1818 but it was not until 1862 that asettled minister Was appointed to it in the person of the Rev . JamesBriggs . Before he came the services were conducted gratuitously .

UNITARIANS IN TODMORDEN .

Richard Wright, the Unitarian missionary, claims to have originatedan Unitarian Society here in 1818 . He records in his diary that hevisited Todmorden in that year and that people came a distance oftwelve or fourteen miles to hear him . He was heard, he adds, "bypeople scattered over a tract of country of not less than three hundredsquare miles ." Before the advent of Mr . Wright however the Rev .Joseph Cooke of Rochdale had induced a number of methodists

NONCONFORMITY IN ROCHDALE.

257

to leave that body, and they became known as "methodist unitarians ." IAt the annual association meeting of the " methodist unitarians," held4th June, 1819, Mr. Taylor of Rochdale gave an account of the workdone in Todmorden, and it was decided to hold the next meeting ofthe association in that place. On Whit-Sunday, 6th June, 1824, achapel capable of seating four hundred persons was opened .

This building is on the Yorkshire side of Todmorden . Since theerection of the handsome Unitarian Church (in 1869) by Messrs . Fieldenthe old chapel (which has a graveyard attached) has been made into aSunday school.

UNION STREET WESLEYAN CHAPEL.Methodism was introduced into Rochdale by John Bennet of

Derbyshire, who reported on 7th March, 1746-7, that he had beento the town several times and had "begun a little society there ." Theinhabitants were "in alarm," but although there was a prospect ofmuch opposition "the word was gladly received and multitudes flockedto hear him ." 2 In 1747, William Grimshaw, then curate of Haworth,also visited this society .3 The place of meeting was at widow \Vhittaker'swhere in the spring of 1749 Christopher Hopper preached to "as manyas the house could contain, they were turbulent enough but we werenot afraid ." 4 To stir up this little band John Bennet requestedWesley to pay a visit to Rochdale which he did on the i8th October,1749 ; the two rode into the town where they found an excited crowdlining the streets, and they were met with "shouting, cursing, blasphem-ing and gnashing of teeth." Finding it impossible "to preach abroad"Wesley went into a large room open to the street and called aloud,"Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts ."The sermon it appears had good effect, for the diary goes on, "theword of God prevailed over the fierceness of man, none opposed orinterrupted, and there was a very remarkable change in the behaviourof the people as we afterwards went into the town." They went onto Bolton and on entering the street there they "perceived that thelions at Rochdale were lambs in comparison of those at Bolton ."5

' The Wesleyan Methodists held regular services in 1817, at Whitworth, Lanehead, Lowerplace, and at"Nacks," or Kithooth .

2 Wesleyan Mag., 1778, p . 472.

3 Grinishaw's Letters.

4 Memoir of C. Hopper, p. 24.5 J . Wesley's Works, 3rd Edit ., ii ., 1 63-

33

258

HISTORY OF TILE PARISH OF ROCHDALE.

Wesley does not appear to have visited Rochdale again until 3rdApril, 1752, when he went to Bank House . [See Chap . XIX.]Matthew Mayer of Portwood Hall near Stockport, about 1770, establisheda small society at Buersill, where William Grimshaw, R . Clegg, Christo-pher Hopper and others preached . I

Two of the earliest meeting places of the society in Rochdale aresaid to have been a large room in a warehouse near the site of thepresent Town Hall and a house in Temple Court, off Blackwater street,but the evidence as to the latter place is not clear .2 It is howevercertain that in 1770 a methodist chapel was erected in Toad Lane,where on 29th April in that year, John Wesley preached . In hisdiary he calls it "the new preaching house at Rochdale ." Wesley afterthis came several times to the town and on 23rd April, 1788, he re-cords that he had a "lively congregation at Rochdale . Formerly wehad much trouble here, but it is past, and they now hold the unityof the spirit in the bond of peace ." The Toad Lane Chapel, about1793 was sold to be used as a theatre, after considerable oppositionfrom the Rev. Adam Clarke, who on being told that if the trusteesdid not sell the building a theatre would be erected opposite the chapelreplied, "Then I'll set up my God against their devil ." 3 This theatrewas pulled down in 1865 and on the site of it was erected the centralCo-operative Stores . On the 23rd May, 1793, a chapel in Union streetwas opened, and this was used until 1825, when it was pulled downand the present building took its place .

Up to the year 177o Rochdale was included in the Keighley circuit ;from that year to 1795 it belonged to the Manchester circuit . Fromthis date to 18oo the following were the Rochdale preachers :- 1795John Gaulter, born at Chester in 1765, he died in 1839, in his seventy-fourth year ; and John Denton . 1796, John Gaulter and Robert Miller,the latter was born at Rugby and died at Darlington in 1829 . 1797, JohnGaulter and Thomas Wood ; the latter had a master of arts universitydegree . 1798, William Myles an Irishman : he died in 1828 agedseventy ; and William Hansworth . 1799, William Myles and JonathanCrowther .4

' Methodism in Rossendale, W . Jessop, p. r66.

'Robertson's Guide to Rochdale, p . 152 .3 Do .

p. t68 .11

11

4 Chronicles of Methodism, by John Stephens, ii ., 182 .

NONCONFORMITY IN ROCHDALE .

259

In 1782 James Hamilton, a tin-plate worker, commenced a smallSunday school in a room over his workshop in White Beaver Yard.This was afterwards removed to a room over a shop in the MarketPlace, and again to a larger one in Temple Court, Blackwater Street .The scholars were taken on Sundays in turns to the BlackwaterChapel, St . Mary's Chapel (Baum), and to the Wesleyan Chapel .When Union Street Chapel was built this school was transferred to it,and there a Sunday school has been conducted to the present day . ,

There are now a large number of Wesleyan chapels in the parish.

BAILLIE STREET CHAPEL .This chapel is one of the largest in the parish . It was opened

8th January, 1837, the congregation being at that time composed ofseceders from the Union Street Chapel. It now belongs to theUnited Methodist Free Church .

MILTON CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH .In 1852, owing to a dispute as to the choice of a minister for

Providence Chapel (High Street) a secession took place and the resultwas the erection of this handsome chapel, which was opened in 1855 .

METHODISM IN TODMORDEN.Methodism was first preached in this district by William Darney, a

Scotchman, who preached at Gawksholme in 1744, and in May of thesame year he formed there a "class," consisting of ten persons, whichsubsequently become known as "William Darney's Society,"2 and thissociety the Rev . William Grimshaw visited in 1746,3 and appears to havematerially assisted in the work which Darney had begun . John Wesley,in his journal under 1st May, 1747, records that after preaching at Shorehe "climbed up to Todmorden Edge, the brow of a long chain of mountains,where I called a serious people 'to repent and believe the gospel .'" InMay, 1753, he again preached at Todmorden, when " the people stood

'-Hist . of Wesleyan Methodist School, J . Bampton Maltby, p. 6 . It has been asserted that this schooldid not become a Wesleyan school until 1835 . The Wesleyans on the other hand maintain that their schoolwas established in 1784 .

- Methodism in Rossendale .

3 Grimshaw's Letters .

260 HIsToRY OF THE PARISH OF ROCHDALE.

row above row on the side of the mountain . They were rough enoughin outward appearance, but their hearts were as melting as wax ." Afterthis the followers of Wesley met from time to time in each other's housesuntil their first chapel (at Doghouse) was built in 1783 . One of the classesmet at Scaitcliffe, John Crossley being its leader . In 1827 the congre-gation removed from Doghouse to the new chapel in York Street . In1784 and again in 1786 Wesley preached in Todmorden Church .

Until 1784 Todmorden was a station upon the Colne circuit, andwas supplied with a preacher only about once in six weeks ; after this itwas the head of a circuit .

The following were the earliest ministers stationed at Todmordenin 1799, Robert Lomas ; James Townley, D.D., author of " Illustrationsof Biblical Literature." i8oo, Robert Lomas ; William Leach . i8oi,Theophilus Lessey ; Edward Hare . 1802, Cleland Kirkpatrick ; JohnChittle . 1803, Cleland Kirkpatrick ; Isaac Muff. , The Wesleyans haveseveral large chapels in Todmorden .

THE INDEPENDENTs have several chapels in Todmorden ; the one atPatmos was originally built by the New Connexion Methodists in 1816,but transferred to the Independents in 1849 .

PROVIDENCE CHAPEL (HIGH STREET) .

This chapel was built in i8o6 by a number of the friends of the Rev .Joseph Cooke, who had been expelled from the Wesleyan Methodistconnexion on account of his religious views . Joseph Cooke was bornnear Dudley in Worcestershire. In 1795 he joined the Methodists, andin 18o3 was appointed to Rochdale ; during his ministry here he wasadmonished by the Conference and removed to Sunderland, and whilst hewas there his friends in Rochdale published his two sermons on justifi-cation by faith, which ultimately led to his expulsion . A considerablenumber from Union Street took up his views and followed him to thenew chapel, where he ministered until his death in 1811 .2 In his latteryears he became almost a Unitarian . [See Clover Street Chapel.] In1814 the building was sold, and it then became a Congregational Chapel .The following is a list of its ministers :-John Ely, 1814 to 1833 ; T. C .

' Chronicles of Methodism, Vol . ii., p . 216 .' lie was buried inside the chapel in front of the pulpit .

NONCONFORMITY IN ROCHDALE . 261

Carlisle, 1835 to 1837 ; David Hewitt, 1838 to 1850 ; William Spencer,1852 to 18J7 ; George Snashall, B.A., 1858 to 1866 ; J . C. Mc.Cappin,1867 to 1871 ; R. G. Williams, 1871 to 1884. The present minister isthe Rev. R. Veitch, M.A.

THE BAPTIST CHAPEL (WEST STREET) .

John Hirst, who was for forty-two years minister of the Baptist Churchat Bacup, was a native of Rochdale, where he was born (in BlackwaterStreet) 29th August, 1736 ; he was brought up as a "card setter," andduly apprenticed toScholfield of Spotland Bridge, where he wasemployed in the manufacture of woollen goods. For some time he occa-sionally preached as a Methodist, but in 1767 he joined the Baptists, andshortly afterwards he preached one Sunday a month at Deanhead inWalsden, and in 1772 he, the Rev. John Fawcett, and other Baptistministers preached at Rochdale . Before this time the Baptists of thetown and district were accustomed to attend the services at Bacup andWainsgate . I

On the 12th October, 1793, nine people were baptized in the RiverRoch, near the Orchard, in the presence of a large concourse of spec-tators . Mr. Hirst officiated, and the crowd was addressed by Messrs .Crabtree, Bamford, and Greenwood (" at proper distances from each other "),Mr. Greenwood standing on the bridge . After the speeches " many tongueswere employed, some crying one thing some another ;" amongst otherthings it was said that Mr. Hirst received five shillings from each onehe baptized . To set this report at rest a testimony was obtained, signedby the whole of the people who had been immersed ; their names were-Grace Butterworth, Jonathan Kershaw, James Law, Benjamin White-head, Abraham Broadbent, John Gartside, John Shaw, Susan Rhodes,and Susan Ogden.2

On 18th September, 1773, the Rochdale Baptists attended at Bacupand desired to be exempted from contributing to the ministry there, onaccount of the expenses at Rochdale . Their first meeting place was ina room of the Bull Inn at the bottom of Yorkshire Street, afterwardscalled the " Bull Chamber."

In 1772, the ministry of the Presbyterian Chapel in Blackwater Streetbeing vacant, Mr . Hirst was invited to preach there, but someone who

' Life of John Hirst, pp. 77 and 121 .

'Do., p . 125 .

26 2

HISTORY OF THE PARISH OF ROCHDALE.

objected to his tenets locked the door, and on his arrival it had to beburst open and some altercation ensued .T

In April, 1775, a plot of land was taken in Town Meadows on whicha building was erected fourteen yards by twelve yards (outside), at acost of 64oo. This chapel for many years remained without pews orbenches ; in 1783 the number of members was 109 . In 1833 the chapelin West Street was built and the old one abandoned .

MINISTERS .

ABRAHAM GREENWOOD, born at Barnoldswick 21st January, 1749, hemarried a daughter of the Rev. Alvery Jackson, 14th February, 1 775 ;shortly afterwards he came to Rochdale in consequence of a differencebetween him and his congregation . He resigned in 1780 or 1781, andwent to Dudley in Worcestershire, where he died .

JOHN DRACUP had for a time been minister at Rodhilland, Todmorden ;he came to Rochdale in 1780 or 1781, and resigned in 1783, and wentto Steep Lane near Sowerby, where he died in 1795.2

JAMES HOWORTII was next invited for twelve months to fill the ministry,but he died before the end of the year . The invitation to him was"unanimous," yet it was only signed by twenty, of whom twelve werewomen, and of these only one signed her name, the rest making marks .3

THOMAS LITTLEWOOD was a native of Lidget near Clayton, in theparish of Bradford, and was born 17th March, 1753 . As a youth he learntworsted manufacture, and was afterwards a woolstapler . In 1786 he wasordained to the ministry of the chapel in Town Meadows, which he filledup to the time of his death . In the present chapel is a marble tablet(which was removed from Town Meadows) to the memory of "The Rev.Thomas Littlewood, thirty-two years pastor of this church, and head ofa respectable seminaryHe died on the 28th September, 1817,aged sixty-four years ."

WILLIAM STEPHENS, born 25th October, 1765, in London. As ayoung man he was an actor on the stage, which profession he relinquished,and in 1796 became minister of the Independent chapel at Bingley inYorkshire . After officiating at several places he joined the Baptists, andin November, 1817, was appointed to Rochdale . He held the appoint-ment until 1837, when he resigned .

He died 16th September, 1839,

' Life of John Hirst, p . 125.

-MS. Notes by Rev. W. F. Burchell .

3 Do .

NONCONFORMITY IN ROCHDALE.

263

aged seventy-three, and was buried in the chapel yard . There is a portraitof him in the vestry. He published a sermon on "Faith in Christ anda New Birth connected," which was preached at Town Meadows 14thJanuary, 1821 . ,

Up to this time the number of members fluctuated between eightyand one hundred .

BENAIAII Hat; was appointed in 1837, but he only remained a fewmonths, when he went to America ; returning to this country he settledat Clapham.

WILLIAM FITZER BURCHELL was the son of Thomas and HannahBurchell, and was born at Tedbury in Gloucestershire 19th September,1798. His first ministry was at Falmouth in Cornwall, where he marriedAmelia, daughter of William Bullmore, Esq . He was appointed to WestStreet Chapel in 1838, and held the appointment until I86o, when heresigned and went to live near London, where he died a few years ago .

E . C . PIKE, M .A., was appointed in 1861 and resigned in 1866 .SAMUEL CHAPMAN was here from 1867 to 1870 ; he is now in Melbourne.T. HARWOOD PATTISON, 1871 to 1878 .ROBERT LEWIS, 1878 to 1885 .S . R. ALDRIDGE, 1885 to ,888.The Baptists have now several chapels in the town of Rochdale and

in various parts of the parish .

OGDEN CHAPEL.This chapel was founded by a few members of the congregation

of the Baptist Chapel in Town Meadows [see p . 262] and was openedin 1785 and the greater part of it is still in use, but to it hasrecently been added (in 1861) a Sunday school .

The first minister was Mr. Wade who was ordained about theyear 1787. He afterwards removed to Accrington .

Adjoining the chapel is a chapel-yard in which are several monu-ments of the Ainsworth family of Wicken Hall, the Bartlemores andthe Kelsalls of Rochdale.

PARTICULAR BAPTIST " HOPE CHAPEL."This chapel which was called "Hope Chapel" was built in 18io .

Its congregation consisted of a number of seceders from the chapel inTown Meadows.

' Printed at Rochdale by J . Littlewood, 1821 .

264

HISTORY OF THE PARISH OF ROCHDALE .

The first minister was John Warburton who removed from Rochdaleto Trowbridge in Wiltshire. He was succeeded by John Kershawin 1817 who remained until his death, 11th January, 1870 . An"Autobiography of John Kershaw" was published in 1871 .1 He wasborn at Lower Fold, Healey, 25th August, 1792, and was minister ofHope Chapel fifty-three years .

METHODIST NEW CONNEXION (WATER STREET) .The members of this sect of methodists in 1820 met in a garret

in St. Mary's Gate, from' whence they removed to a chapel in Zacharywhich was opened in 1822. This proving too small, a larger one wasbuilt in Water street ; and finally in October, 1869, the large chapelin Molesworth street was opened. One of the original promoters ofthis denomination in Rochdale was William Whittle Barton who wasfor many years the town surveyor ; he died in 1859 .

HALL FOLD CHAPEL (WHITWORTH) .In 1717 there were at least nineteen Presbyterian households in

Whitworth [see p. 251], and as this number increased a minister wasstationed there and a chapel erected . From an original document,dated 1718, it appears that in that year five shillings and fivepencewas paid for 165 square yards of land "to erect. a meeting housethereon ."

RADCLIFFE SCHOLEFIELD, son of Radcliffe Scholefield, attorney-at-law .Rochdale, [see Schofield Hall], was probably the first settled ministerat Hall Fold . He came to Whitworth in 1718 and remained thereuntil 1727, when he went to Ringhay Chapel in Cheshire . (He appearsoccasionally also to have preached at Hale.) He died in August[buried on the 16th], 1728 .2

The REv. RICHARD SCHOLEFIELD, son of the last minister, wasprobably appointed shortly before his marriage with the daughter ofMr. Dawson, the minister at Blackwater Street Chapel, in 1728 ; if sohe was only here for a very short time, as in that same year he be-came minister of the Presbyterian chapel at Buxton, where he died

` Second Edition, London, 1871 .2 Evans' List and Dickenson's Bur. Reg . Dickenson says :" Mr . Radcliffe Scholefield, near Redcliffe

Bridge in Lancashire, bur. Aug. r6 at Ringhay in Cheshire.

NONCONFORMITY IN ROCHDALE.

265

between 3oth June and 7th July, 1740. 1 He left a son Radcliffe anda daughter Josepha ; the former was a Presbyterian minister. [SeeSchofield Hall.] In 1743 Samuel Taylor, gentleman, built a housewhich he conveyed to the trustees for a residence for the minister .

TITUS CORDINGLEY was at Whitworth about the middle of the lastcentury. He has been described as "a very useful and acceptableminister." Immediately before him there was a preaching student fromWarrington, who is said to have taught the doctrine of the Arians .2

JAMES BURGESS was the son of the Rev. James Burgess, who in1743 was minister of the Independent Chapel at Greenacres in theparish of Oldham. James Burgess the younger before the year 1770was minister at Hall Fold, and in that year he removed to Hatherlowin Cheshire, where he remained until 1776, when he returned to hisoriginal congregation at Whitworth where he continued until his deathin 1784.3 He was the author of the following :-

"A Proverbial Catechism for Youth .""The Prophetic History of Daniel.""The Reconciler," in three parts ."The Pilgrim's Travels from Mount Sinai to Mount Zion," in six sermons .'"Beelzebub Driving and Drowning his Hogs."

He was also co-author of "A Treatise on Public Prayer ." Mr. Burgessis best known as the author of this last-mentioned sermon,5 whichwhilst it has been condemned as coarse and offensive to good taste, issaid to have been suited to the circumstances and character of manyof those for whose special benefit it was preached .

Dr. Halley calls Burgess "a strange as well as an evangelicalpreacher, who sometimes startled his hearers by incautious and ex-travagant assertions ." The remarkable sermon about the hogs wasdivided into three heads, under which the devil "verified three oldEnglish proverbs, viz., 'the devil will play at small game rather thannone at all,' 'they run fast whom the devil drives,' and 'the devilbrings his hogs to a fine market .'"

'Dickinson's Bur . Reg .

-Dr. Raffles' MSS .-Halley's Lane . Puritanism, ii ., 426.3 Hist . of Greenacre chapel, p. 51 .4 This was finished 24th February, 1797 . The first edition was printed by T. Wood of Rochdale, and

another edition in the same year by G. Nicholson, Manchester .5First edition 1770, second edition after his death ; in this he is called "late minister of Haugh Fold

near Whitworth."34

266

HISTORY OF THE PARISH OF ROCHDALE .

Since the death of James Burgess the following have been succes-sively ministers of Hall Fold, viz ., George Towers, appointed in 1785and left in 1794 ; Thomas Robinson, came 1794 died 1819 ; Mr.Taylor followed and died in 1825 ; William Gilson came next : heresigned in 1832 and was succeeded by William Thorburn, who leftin 1847 ; Richard Robinson, died 1858 ; Robert Berry, left in 1866 ;Joseph Oddy, resigned 1875 ; W. H . Brearley, left in i88o . TheRev. J. E. Clayton is the present minister . ,

A Sunday school was opened here in 1811 .The original chapel stood in what is now the graveyard .

Thepresent building was erected in 1849 .

THE SOCIETY OF FRIENDS.The Quakers found early converts among the people of Todmorden .

Probably one of the first to join them there was John Fielden of Inch-field, the births of whose children, although christened at Heptonstall(1643 et seq.), were recorded in the Friends' Registers .2 John Fieldenwas endowed with all the sturdy enthusiasm which inspired so manyof the early converts to this sect . In 1664 he was sent a prisoner toWakefield and there fined five pounds for attending a Quakers' meeting,and in the same year his goods to the value of eighteen shillings wereseized by the churchwardens of Heptonstall .

For refusing to attend service at a "steeple house," cheese worththree shillings and fourpence was taken from his house in 1665 ; butworse than this followed, and in 1668 the vicar of Halifax put him inthe Exchequer Court, the consequence being that he was imprisonedfor thirty-one weeks . Seventeen years later, for absenting himself fromchurch for four weeks, he was taken a prisoner to Pontefract and finedtwenty shillings, and on another occasion he was apprehended at a meet-ing in Padiham and sent to the Preston house of correction for eightweeks.3 The result of persecution like this, as might have been ex-pected, strengthened the cause, and in 1689 notice was given to thejustices that the Quakers desired to have registered as a place ofworship the house of Joshua Fielden of Bottomley and of Stansfield ;who like his brother John had embraced the religion of this society,

•

I have to thank the Rev . J . E. Clayton for the modern portion of this list .' Friends' Office, London .

a Records of the Society.

NONCONFORMITY IN ROCHDALE.

267

and for doing so had not escaped from the arm of the law . In 1683his goods were seized for tithes and he and his wife were fined forabsence from church, and in 1685 he, his wife, and son were fined, andhis goods (including a bible) were taken to pay the penalty. Thehouse which was licensed in 1689 was in Stansfield . The society hadalso four meeting houses in Langfield .

At this time there were a few (but only a few) Quakers in otherparts of the parish, as is shown by an entry in the Rochdale Church-wardens' Accounts in 1686, when the following Quakers were presentedfor non-payment of Church Rates, viz ., Edward Duckworth, sevenpence ;T

Richard Houlden, tenpence ; Martha Lord, sevenpence ; Joshua ffielden,ninepence ; Daniel Greenwood, threepence ; the same Daniel Green-wood for Eight Bank in Walsden, 3d . Most of these were fromTodmorden .

In January, 1694, the Friends had registered their meeting houseat Shewbroad in Langfield near Todmorden, in Yorkshire, where theyhad also a burial ground .2 The ground was in use at least fiveyears before this, as the registers show interments in 169o.3 TheSociety of Friends had still its meeting house at Shewbroad ; it wasrebuilt in 1807 .

In 1715 there were fifty Quakers in Todmorden [see p . 251], butthis number included only those in the Lancashire portion of thevalley .

The following bequests were about this time made for the use of theQuakers in Todmorden :-Sarah Hargreaves of Nab in Rossendale left tenpounds to the poor Friends of Todmorden Meeting ; Anthony Crossley ofScaitcliffe [see Chap. XVIII] gave (before 1706) Carr House estate inStansfield to trustees, to employ the issues for relief of such personsas they should think fit, provided they were of "the persuation andSociety of people called Quakers ;" Henry Kaley of Todmorden Edge,about the year 1719, gave ten pounds-the interest to be applied forthe use of the poor Friends of Todmorden Meeting, not receivingrelief from the monthly meeting ; Susan Barrett gave five pounds forthe same purpose ; and Margaret Sutcliffe bequeathed four pounds for

•

His name is in the Register of Friends in 1681 as of Todmorden .2 Deed of enfeoffment, dated 25th Jan., 1699, mentions the burial ground .3 Friends' Office, London.

268 HISTORY OF THE PARISH OF ROCHDALE.

the like uses . , The interest from these charities is still employed asdirected by the donors .

Before 1807 Todmorden was part of Brighouse Monthly Meeting ;it is now attached to Marsden Meeting.

The Friends in the town of Rochdale, up to February, 1808,attended at the meeting house at Turf Lane End near Royton . Afterthis date they went to the meeting house in George street, the grave-yard of which will always be remembered as the place where JohnBright was buried.

In 1813 there were ninety-three members at Rochdale, amongstwhom were the Brights, Fothergills, Ecroyds, Hagues, Harrisons, Kings,and Midgleys.

ST. STEPHEN'S CHURCH (LADY HUNTINGDON'S) .

This church was opened 12th January, 1812, its first minister, theRev. J . K. Foster (with the assistance of the Rev . J . Nelson) havingshortly before that date got together a congregation, which identifieditself with the Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion . Mr. Foster remainedhere for sixteen years, when he left on his appointment as classical tutorto the college of Cheshunt, of which institution he subsequently becamepresident. After his departure the congregation was broken up, and fora time the church was used by the Presbyterians . After a short timeit was discovered that under the trust deed the building could not beheld by the Presbyterians, and it was re-opened on the original plan, andin November, 1832, the Rev. S. T. Gibbs was appointed minister . Duringhis short ministry here what are now called the Old Schoolrooms wereopened ; he resigned in 1836, and for about two years afterwards nosuccessor was appointed .

In October, 1838, the Rev. E . C. Lewis was sent to supply thepulpit temporarily, at which time the congregation did not exceed fifty innumber. Mr. Lewis, having accepted an invitation to become the per-manent minister, was ordained in St. Stephen's Church in October 1839 .Ebenezer Charles Lewis was the son of Charles Sandys Lewis of Church-field academy, Margate ; he was born at Margate 22nd February, 1816 ;he married (I) Letitia, daughter of James Swallow of Maidenhead, and(2) Miss Leicester of Leamington . By his first wife he had issue a son

' Record of Monthly Meetings, Marsden .

NONCONFORMITY IN ROCHDALE.

2 69

and a daughter. He resigned his ministry in September, 1876. A tabletin the church erected to his memory records that he died at Slough 23rdDecember, 1886, and was interred in Upton churchyard .

The subsequent ministers were the Rev . R . Lovett, M.A., 1876-1882 ;the Rev. F. M. Bayne, 1882-1885 ; the Rev . J. W. Sturdy, 1886 ; theRev . W. R. Holman, the present minister .

ST. JOHN'S CATHOLIC CHURCH (ANN STREET) .

This is the oldest Roman Catholic Church in the parish . It wasbuilt in 1829 . Father Turner (afterwards Dr. Turner, bishop of Salford)was then the priest at Rochdale . Before the erection of this church themembers of his congregation met for divine service in a small room ina warehouse in Clegg Street . Father Dowling was the priest from 1835until- his death in 1871, and was succeeded by the Very Rev. Dean O'Neill .