Memories of Troopers Hill
Crews Hole Free Methodist Chapel of 1853
The Crews Hole Free Methodist Chapel stands on Crews Hole Road near the corner of Troopers Hill Road, it was a United Methodist Free Church. Prior to this there had been a Wesleyan a meeting house at the White House that stood on Corkers Hill above the site of the chapel. The chapel itself was the larger building to the right, with a smaller sunday school on the left.
History of the Chapel
The date stone on the chapel is now unreadable, but is reported to have read 'Free Methodist Chapel 1853'.
William Butler of the Tar Works (which was just across the road) very much involved in the life of the chapel; he was involved in establishing the chapel and was a lay preacher there.
While 1853 is widely recorded as the date this chapel was built (as marked on the date stone), and there were celebrations of anniversaries in 1953 (100 years) and again in 1978 (125 years); records from the Library and Archive at the John Wesley New Rooms in Bristol indicate that it was first built a few years earlier.
William Butler's involvement in the Methodist Church in Bristol is recorded by George Eayers in his 1911 book 'Wesley and Kingswood and its Free Churches'. He is listed as one of the church leaders in Kingswood (p232-238). It seems he became associated with Wesleyan Methodism in his childhood and he joined a church in the Kingswood Circuit in 1845.
"In the Wesleyan Reform movement of 1849 his symapthies were with those who desired representative government in Methodism".
These disagreements in the Wesleyan Church led to William being one of the 80% of the church members who were expelled in 1849. William Butler then became one of the leaders of the new Wesleyan Reform Society in Bristol. This body united with the the Wesleyan Methodist Association in 1857 to form the United Methodist Free Church. A church which William Butler strongly supported for the rest of his life.
The construction of the Crews Hole Chapel coincided with this split in the Wesleyan church. Cottages are shown on the site on the Tithe map of around 1845. It seems that the chapel was built and opened by 1849 (LH Gerrish typescript, Bristol Records Office) just before the split and indeed William Butler may have been involved in funding it. But with 80% of its members expelled the original Wesleyan Church had reduced numbers. George Eayers says (p194)
"The main building at Crew's Hole was originally used by the Wesleyans. Not being required by them however, it was purchased from them, William Butler being chiefly instrumental in this transaction."
The Bristol Times and Mirror carried an advert on 19th February 1853:
"Wesleyan Methodist Chapel, Crews Hole, Gloucestershire
To be sold at Auction by Mr Scott at the Fire Engine Inn, St. George's, Gloucestershire on Monday, Feb 28th, 1853, at Six for Seven o'Clock in the Evening,
All that Chapel or Meeting-House, built for the use of the Wesleyan Methodists, situate at Crews Hole, in the parish of Saint George, Gloucestershire.
The premises are of Freehold Tenure, and free from incumbrances."
We had previously assumed that this advert refered to the old Wesleyan Meeting House at the White House, but given the above it is most likely the chapel on Crew's Hole Road.
1853 is therefore the date when the chapel was purchased and opened as part of the Church that became the United Methodist Free Church.
In 1853 only the chapel building existed, the records at the New Room Library referencing the United Free Methodist magazine of July 1859 says that "In 1859, the windows were enlarged and raised and additional pews provided".
The records add that "a single story schoolroom was built to the left hand side of the building, and on the right a two story section, with three rooms used as classrooms, vetries and toilets, were added during the occupation by the Free Methodist".
The two story section to the right of the chapel still stands as a private house. Given that the date stone refers to 'Free Methodist' rather than 'Wesleyan' or 'Wesleyan Reformers' it seem likely that it was added as part of the rebuilding after the United Methodist Free Church was formed.
In the late 1890s William Butler arranged for electricity to be installed in the chapel; it is said that the Tar Works continued to provide free electricity to the chapel until the works closed.
Crews Hole Methodist Chapel closed in 1987; its congregation joined that of two other Methodist Churches in the then newly built Summerhill Methodist Church in Summerhill Road, which then itself closed in 2022. Crews Hole chapel has since been converted for housing.
A second chapel by the river in Crews Hole was constructed in 1860 for the Wesleyan Methodists; this has also now been converted for housing, having been used for many years by Kelston Precision Gears as a workshop.
The Congregation in 1953
The photo below was taken in 1953 at the Crews Hole Methodist Chapel Coronation celebrations (it was also 100 years since the chapel opened as a Free Methodist chapel) - if you can help us fill in the missing names - see below the photo - (or think some of them are wrong) please contact us.
Lower down the page there are two photos of the Women's Bright Hour group taken inside the chapel (date unknown but probably 1940s or 50s) as well as two photos of the men's Crew's Hole Bible Class Mutual Aid Society taken around 1907.
The Names
1 Clive Drake;
2 Philip Drake;
3 ???;
4 Richard Dark;
5 John Britton;
6 Jennifer Holloway;
7 Gordon Alvis;
8 Judith Smith;
9 ???;
10 Richard Mealing;
11 Andrew Comley;
12 Marion Comley;
13 ???;
14 Mr Smith;
15 Mrs Smith;
16 Mrs Jay;
17 ???;
18 Gloria Smith;
19 Mrs Laver;
20 Glyn Britton;
21 ???;
22 Hazel Laver;
23 Eileen Churchill or Maureen Peacock?;
24 Keith Britton;
25 Lorraine Alvis;
26 Pauline Alvis;
27 Dianne Gingell;
28 Berly Smith (Gloria's sister);
29 ???;
30 John Mealing;
31 Mrs Baker;
32 Mrs Perrett;
33 Alice Carter;
34 Mr Roberts;
35 ???;
36 Eric Drake;
37 Mr Iles;
38 Bert Jay;
39 ???;
40 ???;
41 Joan Mealing;
42 ???;
43 Mabel Hill;
44 Eileen Drake;
45 ???;
46 Mrs Joyce;
47 Florie Hicks;
48 Elsie Britton;
49 Bernard Alvis;
50 Jacqueline Jay;
51 Joy Laver;
52 George Drake;
53 George Hicks;
54 Les Holloway;
55 Mrs Lawson;
56 Reg Laver;
57 Pam Harris;
58 ???;
59 Maureen Dark;
60 Pat Townsend;
61 Ethel Britton (née Thomas);
62 Harold Laver;
63 Bob Alvis;
64 Willy Hicks;
65 Gladstone Britton ;
Crews Hole Women's Bright Hour
Back row: ??? - ??? - Mrs Tucker - Mary Clarke 'Aunt Polly' (née Dauncey) - Rose Head (née Drake) - ??? - ???
Front row: Mabel Nurse - Joan Mealing (née Dauncey, Polly's brother's daughter) - Rose Bessell, née Amphlett
Women's Bright Hour
David Hales, who gave us the above photo, told us that Polly on the back row was his grandmother's sister and that their brother Ern Dauncey was the Minster at the chapel. We don't have a date for this photo, but it is probably slightly earlier than 1953.
After seeing the photo John Mealing wrote to us to say:
"David Hale is incorrect in his comment that my grandfather, Ern Dauncey was a chapel minister. He was certainly a Methodist lay preacher but not the minister for the chapel. That post was covered, at that time by the minister at Wesley Memorial in Bryants Hill. However, as I recall, my grandfather was Sunday school superintendent at Crews Hole, his wife Maud ran the Band of Hope, and my mother Joan was Sunday School secretary".
"I can't add any names to those missing from the photos, although I can add detail to Polly, she was Mary Clarke, always known as Aunt Polly. The last time I met David Hale was some 50 years ago when he helped me out of the road in Summerhill road after I had fallen off my motorcycle. Thanks Dave".
Jayne wrote in November 2020 to add:
"My mother, Antoinette Holbrook, née Bessell went to the church as a child and has the same photo as you of the Crews Hole Women's Bright Hour as her grandmother is on it. She has identified some others on the picture as follows;
Her grandmother, Rose Bessell, née Amphlett is front row far right, sat down. Left in the front row is Mabel Nurse, 3 in from the right on the back row is definitely Rose Head, née Drake."
If you can add more information or tell us the date it was taken please get in touch.
Jayne also sent us a second photo of the group, "all dressed up for a sketch of some sort! The Groom is Rose Head and the lady on the far left is Mabel Nurse. Date unknown sorry!"
Crew's Hole Bible Class Mutual Aid Society
Both the photos below were also sent to us by Jayne. Click on the images to enlarge. The first photo is from 1907 and the second must be a similar date.
William Bessell is third row up from the front, fourth
in from the right, his brother Fred is in the row behind, sixth from the right. George Shellard is in the second row
from the front, fifth from the right.
The Bessell family, who feature in some of these photos, lived at the White House which was on the hillside above the chapel. As mentioned above, part of the White House was used as the Methodist Meeting House before the chapel opened in 1853.
