Hidden Horsham - Methodist Church

Horsham Methodist Church

The Methodist Church is located in Horsham's London Road. It is the second Methodist Chapel to stand on this site

The original chapel was started in 1832, the foundation stone being laid on 18th of June. Some fifty years later the congregation had outgrown the building and on the 5th of July 1882 the foundation stones for the Sunday School rooms were laid

Later that year a request to replace the chapel was granted and work soon began on the building featured here. The 1832 foundation stones were cut and re-used as memorial stones, laid 18th November 1882. Building materials salvaged from the first chapel were re-used by the builders Messrs. Potter and Redford. The new chapel was formally opened on the 26th April 1883

The thumbnails above can be clicked to reveal the following images in full size photos:

• Left hand foundation stone on the front of the chapel. The text reads: This stone was laid by Mrs C O Eldridge, November 16th 1882
• Right hand foundation stone on the front of the chapel. The text reads:This stone was laid on the 16th of November 1882 for Mrs James Ireland. By her daughter in memory of Miss Kate Ireland. The donor of the first chapel erected on this site AD 1832
• A stone on the London Road car park side of the grounds which reads: Half this wall belongs to the trustees of the Wesleyan Chapel 1892
• One of the memorial stones for the enlargement of the school rooms which reads: This memorial stone of the enlargement of this schoolroom was laid by Miss Dawson on July 15th 1897
• The other memorial stone for the enlargement of the school rooms which reads: This memorial stone of the enlargement of this schoolroom was laid by M Hill Esq on July 15th 1897
• A view of the chapel and its outbuildings from the nearby Swan Walk car park

In 1897 the Sunday School rooms were extended further and this was marked by the memorial stone laying on the 15th of July

This church has its own web site from which the above information was extracted to confirm the engravings on the foundation and memorial stones. No indication of the story behind the 'half a wall' is given

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