We have 2 Images Above Photograph(s)
Copyright of Peter & Janet Kirk

Ashford Methodist Chapel,
Court Lane,
Ashford in the Water, Derbyshire.

Cemeteries

We believe the Chapel did NOT have a graveyard.

Note: any church within an urban environment may have had its graveyard closed after the Burial Act of 1853. Any new church built after that is unlikely to have had a graveyard at all.

Church History

This Place of Worship was founded in 1830, but we understand it was closed in 1994.

The date above the entrance to the present-day Methodist (Wesleyan) Chapel in Ashford indicates it was built in 1899. This was, however a replacement for an earlier Chapel. Old Maps prior to that date indicate a much smaller building, situated on the same site, which appears to have been integral with Chantry Cottage, as indeed it is today.

The return to the Religious Census of 1851 (HO 129/449/1/9/14) for the place of worship in Ashford with a Wesleyan Methodist congregation describes a separate building, erected in 1830 with free seating for 45, and 48 "other" sittings, and used exclusively as a place of worship. The estimated congregation on March 30th was 27 in the afternoon, and 37 Sunday Scholars - no other services or classes. The return was completed by George Oldfield, the Chapel Steward, of "Geo. Oldfield & Co, Ashford Marble Works, Derbyshire".

The following notice in The London Gazette of 18th September 1900 (p.5775) recorded its registration for marriages:

NOTICE is hereby given, that a separate building named Wesleyan Methodist Church, situated at Court-lane, in the civil parish of Ashford, in the county of Derby, in the registration district of Bakewell, being a building certified according to law as a place of meeting for religious worship, was on the twelfth day of September, 1900, duly registered for solemnizing marriages therein, pursuant to the Act of 6th and 7th Wm. 4, c.85. Dated 13th September 1900.

According to a booklet available in the Church, entitled "Holy Trinity Church - Ashford-in-the-Water" published in 1996, the building was closed for worship in 1994, Accordingly, a notice of cancellation of the registration of "METHODIST CHAPEL Court Lane, Ashford" for marriages was published in The London Gazette of 2nd May 1995 (p.6354) in the following year.

There may be more information available by by selecting one or more of the accompanying images on the right.

Denomination

Now or formerly Wesleyan Methodist.

If more than one congregation has worshipped here, or its congregation has united with others, in most cases this will record its original dedication.

Maps

This Chapel was located at OS grid reference SK1954569738. You can see this on various mapping systems. Note all links open in a new window:

• Ashford Methodist Chapel, Ashford in the Water shown on a Google Map.
• Places of Worship in Ashford in the Water shown on a Google Map.
• Streetmap.co.uk (arrow on map shows the Place of Worship's location) (verified 2018-10-15)
• Bing (Ordnance Survey option) (verified 2018-10-13)
• Bing Maps ('Bird's Eye' View) (verified 2018-10-15)
• Ordnance Survey "getamap" (NB some of the 'Change Map' options may require a subscription) (verified 2018-10-15)
• OpenStreetMap (Maps © OpenStreetMap contributors, CC-BY-SA) (verified 2018-10-15)
• A Vision of Britain Through Time - useful for Boundary Changes (verified 2018-10-15)
• www.magic.gov.uk (Modern Maps with various overlays) (verified 2018-10-15)

Resources

I have found many websites of use whilst compiling the information for this database. Here are some which deserve mention as being of special interest for Ashford in the Water, and perhaps to Local History and Places of Worship as a whole.

• Notices of Civil Registration of Places of Worship for marriages are published in the London edition of The Gazette. Hint: search for registrations from 1998 by choosing 'Church' notices, and the option 'Registration for solemnising marriage'. (verified 2018-12-11)

The above links were selected and reviewed at the time I prepared the information, but please be aware their content may vary, or disappear entirely. These factors are outside my control.