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Zion Methodist Chapel,
Bishopsworth Road, BS13 7JW,
Bedminster Down, Bristol, Gloucestershire.

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 1850, but we understand it was closed in 2008.

Could this former Methodist Church have been the successor to Zion Primitive Methodist Chapel in Bedminster Down Road, listed on Phil Draper's ChurchCrawler website? Phil describes the latter as dating from 1850 - a "small classic building, now demolished", but makes no mention of a successor. The present building may be seen on Maps of the 1880s, in what was possibly then known as Bedminster Down Road, but there is no sign of any other Chapel. Interestingly, at the time, the major road of today, the A38, appears to have been little more than a footpath.

In comparison, the Chapel was probably of some importance. It is a rectangular building, with a central porch, on either side of which is a tall pointed-arched window split into 12 lights (4x3) with interlocking arched glazing bars filling in at the top. Above the porch is a large rose window, with 6 'petals', and above that, a date plaque, which (as far as I can tell) reads "Zion / Prim. Methodist / Chapel / Erected A.D. 18??". The date may be 1883, or 1888. The whole is finished in grey plaster, with brick dressings. A small house adjoins the building on the left (north side), and beyond that, a former Sunday School, built of red brick. The latter is known to have been used since 2010 for meetings of Bedminster Down Church, but has since been sold, and appears to be in independent private ownership. It is shown for the first time as a separate building on Maps of the early 1900s.

The following notice in The London Gazette of 4th June 1920 (p.6254) recorded the registration of Zion for marriages:

A Separate Building, duly certified for religious worship, named ZION PRIMITIVE METHODIST CHAPEL, situated at Bedminster Down, in the civil parish of Bristol, in the county borough of Bristol, in Bristol Registration District, was, on the twenty-eighth May, 1920, registered for solemnizing marriages therein, pursuant to 6th and 7th. Wm. IV, c.85. Dated 31st May 1920.

No corresponding notice of cancellation has been found, but the website of its present owners, the Zion Community Art Space, tells us that the last service took place in 2008. They purchased the building two years later, and today, "Zion", as it is now known, operates as "a 'not-for-profit' social enterprise", which as well as housing an Art Gallery also provides a Cafe, Food Market, and rooms for hire - so serving the community once again, albeit in a secular fashion.

Denomination

Now or formerly Primitive 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 ST5744069939. You can see this on various mapping systems. Note all links open in a new window:

• Zion Methodist Chapel, Bedminster Down, Bristol shown on a Google Map.
• Places of Worship in Bristol 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 Bedminster Down, Bristol, and perhaps to Local History and Places of Worship as a whole.

• The Church officiando's “Bible” - Phil Draper's ChurchCrawler (null) (verified 2018-10-16)
• “Community”, “Cafe”, “Event Space” - a new lease of life for Zion Methodist Church - Zion Community Art Space (null) (verified 2018-11-18)
• 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.