Charlesworth Independent Chapel ('Top Chapel'), Charlesworth, Derbyshire, Church History

Derbyshire Places of Worship

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Charlesworth Independent Chapel ('Top Chapel'), Charlesworth (1) (35k)

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Charlesworth Independent Chapel ('Top Chapel'), Charlesworth

Charlesworth Independent Chapel ('Top Chapel'),
Chapel Brow, Monks Road, SK13 5HH,
Charlesworth, Derbyshire.

Cemeteries

This Chapel has (or had) 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 before 1700, and we understand it is still open.

The foundations of non-conformist worship in Charlesworth can be traced back to the medieval chapel of St Mary Magdalen, possibly sited where 'Top Chapel' is now. The Charlesworth Top Chapel website gives a more comprehensive account of the progression, whilst Non-Conformist Chapels and Meeting Houses, Derbyshire (1986) adds that a presbyterian congregation in the late 17th century may have been the remnant of that ministered to by John Jones, St Mary Magdalen's curate in 1650, who later became a non-conformist preacher in Marple. It also mentions a certificate issued in 1709 for a 'meeting house of protestant dissenters in Glossop Dale called Charlesworth Chapel'.
The present 'Top Chapel' building however dates from 1797, by which time the congregation had become Independent. When I prepared this account originally, it was "Charlesworth Congregational Church", however in the present day (2018) it has reverted to its original name of "Charlesworth Independent Chapel".
There is a substantial graveyard, and its MIs have been transcribed by R. Mansfield in 1948, and published as "Charlesworth Independent Chapel ... 1978-1948"; and there are transcriptions of its parish records included in Marjorie Ward's collection of North West Derbyshire Sources website.

Denomination

Now or formerly Presbyterian/Independent.

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 is located at OS grid reference SK0105492743. You can see this on various mapping systems. Note all links open in a new window:

Charlesworth Independent Chapel ('Top Chapel'), Charlesworth shown on a Google Map.
Places of Worship in Charlesworth 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 Charlesworth, and perhaps to Local History and Places of Worship as a whole.

You may want to visit Charlesworth Top Chapel website for present-day information.
Marjorie Ward's North West Derbyshire Sources (null) (verified 2018-10-15)

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.

Information last updated on 19 Oct 2018 at 15:42.

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This Report was created 26 Dec 2024 - 17:15:48 GMT from information held in the Derbyshire section of the Places of Worship Database. This was last updated on 13 Oct 2021 at 14:33.

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