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Fairfield Methodist Church,
131 Fairfield Road, SK17 7DU,
Fairfield, Derbyshire.

Cemeteries

We believe the Church does 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 1887, and we understand it is still open.

The first building on this site was erected as a replacement for an earlier chapel in Waterswallows Road, described in Bulmer's Directory of 1895 as a neat edifice of dressed stone, with sitting accomodation for nearly 300, erected in 1886 from the designs of Mr J. Wiles [sic: probably 'Wills'], of Derby". In the east gable are three fine Gothic windows filled with stained glass. The ceiling is curved, showing the massive oak rafters which are supported by corbels. The interior is comfortably furnished. Adjoining the chapel are the school and other rooms.

This was Fairfield's third meeting place for Wesleyan Methodists, as its first chapel, erected in 1844, was replaced in 1868. The transition from "old" to "new" is aptly described in the account of "History of Methodism in Fairfield from 1844 to 1994" on Fairfield Methodist Church website - "1887 saw a triumphal procession from the old to the new, for the opening by the Rev. Charles Garrett..."

The Church was known as "Fairfield Road Methodist Church" until 1962, when the congregation was joined by members of the former Primitive Methodist Society in Queens Road; together they became known as Fairfield Methodist Church.

Various issues, described more fully on the Church's website, resulted in a decision to demolish the building; and following an agreement with the "Johnnie" Johnson Housing Trust, a block of sheltered accommodation was erected on the site, "provided they built a suitable building for a modern church".

And indeed this is what happened. The new church was opened on 15th May 1985 by Mrs Agnes Goodwin and Mr John Meddins, two of the oldest members of the Society.

The following notice in The London Gazette of 17th June 1985 (p.8289) recorded its registration for marriages:

A Building certified for worship named FAIRFIELD METHODIST CHURCH, Fairfield Road, Buxton, in the registration district of High Peak in the non-Metropolitan County of Derbyshire was on 23rd May 1985 registered for solemnizing marriages therein pursuant to section 41 of the Marriage Act 1949, as amended by section 1(1) of the Marriage Acts Amendment Act 1958. Dated 10th June 1985.

The building of 1868 on the original site (Waterswallows Road) is known to have served after its deconsecration as the Town Hall, Scout Hut, and more recently Church Hall. More details are available elsewhere in this database.

Note: the information in Derbyshire Record Office's Non-Conformist Register Guide, that Fairfield Methodist Chapel was built in 1886, and closed in 1984 is indeed true, but neglects to mention the newest building - probably because their holdings refer only to the third church, being records of baptisms 1889-1985, and marriages 1956-1983. It was, in fact registered for marriages on 5th January 1889 as per a notice in the Gazette of 19th September 1983 (p.12275) registering its closure, and not, as they state, in 1956.

Denomination

Now or formerly 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 Church is located at OS grid reference SK0660773898. You can see this on various mapping systems. Note all links open in a new window:

• Fairfield Methodist Church, Fairfield shown on a Google Map.
• Places of Worship in Fairfield 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 Fairfield, and perhaps to Local History and Places of Worship as a whole.

• You may want to visit Fairfield Methodist Church website for present-day information.
• 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.