Our Churches and Chapels - Atticus
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There are about 300 "members" of the church. In the Preston circuit,
which until recently included Croston, Cuerden, Brinscall, Chorley,
and Blackpool, and which now only embraces, Cuerden and Croston--the
other places being thought sufficiently strong to look after
themselves--there are about 400 "members." What are termed
"Churches" have been established at all the places named; Preston
being the "parent" of them. A branch of the body exists at
Southport, and it was "brought up" under the care of the Preston
party. Orchard Chapel will accommodate between 700 and 800 persons;
but, like other places of worship, it is never full except upon
special occasions; and the average attendance may be put down at
about 400. In the old chapel the father of the late Alderman G.
Smith preached for a time. The first minister of the chapel, when
rebuilt, was the Rev. J. Guttridge--an energetic, impetuous,
eloquent, earnest man. He had two spells at the place; was at it
altogether about six years; and left the last time about a year ago.
Mr. Guttridge, who is one of the smartest ministers in the body, is
now residing at Manchester, connected regularly with no place of
worship, on account of ill health, but doing what he can amongst the
different churches. The congregation of Orchard Chapel consists
principally of well-dressed working people--a quiet, sincere-looking
class of individuals, given in no way to devotional hysteria, and
taking all things smoothly and seriously. They are a liberal class,
too. During the past two years they have raised amongst themselves
about 800 pounds towards the chapel, upon which there is still a
debt, but which would have been clear of all monetary encumbrances
long since if certain old scores needing liquidation had not stood
in the way. The members of the choir sit near the pulpit, the
females on one side and the males on the other. They are young,
good-looking, and often glance at each other kindly. A female who
plays the harmonium occupies the centre. The music is vigorous and,
considering the place, commendable. On Sundays there are two
services at the chapel--morning and evening; and during the week
meetings of a religious character are held in either the chapel or
the adjoining rooms.
The present minister of the chapel is the Rev. Richard Abercrombie.
He has only just arrived, and may in one sense be termed the
"greatest" minister in Preston, for he is at least six feet high in
his stocking feet. He is an elderly gentleman,--must be getting near
70; but he is almost as straight as a wand, has a dignified look,
wears a venerable grey beard, and has quite a military precision in
his form and walk. And he may well have, for he has been a soldier,
Mr. Abercrombie served in the British army upwards of twenty years.
He followed Wellington, after Waterloo, and was in Paris as a
British soldier when the famous treaty of peace was signed. His
grandfather was cousin of the celebrated Sir Ralph Abercrombie, who
defeated Napoleon's forces in Egypt, and his ancestors held
commissions in our army for upwards of four generations. Tired of
military life, Mr. Abercrombie eventually laid down his arms, and
for 33 years he has been a minister in the body he is now connected
with. It is worthy of remark that, before leaving the army, he
occasionally sermonised in his uniform, and 35 years ago he preached
in his red jacket, &c., in the old Orchard Chapel. Mr. Abercrombie
is a genial, smooth-natured, quiet man--talks easily yet carefully,
preaches earnestly yet evenly; there is no froth in either his
prayers or sermons; he never gets into fits of uncontrollable
passion, never rides the high horse of personal ambition, nor the
low ass of religious vulgarity--keeps cool, behaves himself, and
looks after his work midly and well. He has two or three sons in the
United Methodist Free Church ministry, and one of them, called after
the general who defeated the Napoleonic forces, is the only man
belonging the body who has a university M.A. after his name.
Very good schools are connected with Orchard Chapel. The average day
attendance is 140; and on Sundays the average is about 350, In the
last place, we may observe that the people belonging Orchard Chapel
are, generally, getting along comfortably in all their departments.
Formerly they had feuds, and fights, and church meetings, at which
odd pieces of scandal were bandied about--they may have morsels of
unpleasantness yet to encounter; but taking them all in all they are
moving on serenely and well.
Passing not "from pole to pole," but from the Orchard to Pole-
street, we come to the Baptist Chapel in that, thoroughfare--a
rather dull, strongly-railed-off place, which seems to be receding
from public sight altogether. About 45 years ago, a small parcel of
Preston people, enamoured of the Calvinistic Methodism which the
Countess of Huntingdon recognised, worshipped in a building in
Cannon-street. In 1825 they built, or had raised for them, a chapel
in Pole-street, which was dedicated to St. Mark. At this time,
probably on account of its novelty, the creed drew many followers--
the new chapel was patronised by a somewhat numerous congregation,
which kept increasing for a period. But it gradually dwindled down,
and a total collapse finally ensued. In 1855 a number of General
Baptists, who split from their brethren worshipping in the old
Leeming-street chapel, struck a bargain with the expiring Lady
Huntingdon section for their building in Pole-street, gave about 700
pounds for it, forthwith shifted thereto, and continue to hold the
place. There is nothing at all calling for comment as to the
exterior of the chapel; and not much as to the interior. It will
accommodate about 900 persons. The pews are high, awkward to sit in,
and have a grim cold appearance. The building is pretty lofty, and
is well galleried. The pulpit is at the far end, and the singers sit
on a railed platform before it. The congregation seems both thin and
poor. Very lately we were in it, and estimated the number present at
84--rather a small party for a chapel capable of holding 900.
The building possesses about the best acoustical properties of any
place of worship in Preston. The late Mr. Samuel Grimshaw, of
Preston, who, amongst many other things, had a special taste for
music, used to occupy it at times, with his band, for the purposes
of "practising." He liked it on account of its excellent sounding
qualities. Once, after some practice in it, Mr. Grimshaw offered a
"return"--said he would give the brethren a musical lift with his
band during some anniversary services to be held in the chapel. His
promise was accepted, and when the day came there was a complete
musical flood. The orchestra, including the singers, numbered about
50, and the melodious din they created was something tremendous.
"Sam" had the arrangement of it. There were tenors, baritones, bass
men, trebles, alto-singers, in the fullest feather; there were
trumpeters, tromboners, bassooners, ophicleideans, cornet-a-piston
players, and many others, all instrumentally armed to the very
teeth, and the sensation they made, fairly shook and unnerved the
more pious members of the congregation, who protested against the
chapel being turned into a "concert-hall," &c. The music after all,
was good, and if it were as excellent now there would be a better
attendance at the place. The present orchestra consists of perhaps a
dozen singers, including a central gentleman who is about the best
shouter we ever heard; and they are helped out of any difficulties
they may get into by a rather awkwardly-played harmonium.
The Rev. W. J. Stuart is the minister of the chapel, and he receives
from 70 to 80 pounds a year for his duties. He has a gentlemanly
appearance; looks pretty well considering the nature of his salary;
is getting into the grey epoch of life; is not very erudite; but
seems well up in scriptural subjects; is sincere, mild, primitive in
his notions; has fits of cautiousness and boldness; is precise and
earnest in expression; has an "interpretational" tendency in his
sacred utterances; is disposed to explain mysteries; likes
homilising the people; can talk much; and can be very earnest over
it all. He has fair action, and sometimes gets up to 212 degrees in
his preaching. We won't say that he is in any sense a wearying
preacher; but this we may state, that if his sermons were shorter
they would not be quite so long. And from this he may take the hint.
We are told that the attendance at the chapel is slightly
increasing; but as compared with the past it is still very slender.
The admission to either the platform or pulpit of the chapel, not
very long ago, of a wandering "Indian chief," and a number of
Revivalists, who told strange tales and talked wildly, has operated,
we believe, against the place--annoyed and offended some, and caused
them to leave. The minister, no doubt, admitted these men with an
honest intention; but everybody can't stand the war-whooping of
itinerant Indians, nor the sincere ferociousness of Revivalists; and
awkward feelings were consequently generated in some quarters by
them. In the main, Mr. Stuart is a kindly, quiet, gentlemanly
person, and barring the little interruption caused by the dubious
Indian and the untamed Revivalists, has got on with a small
congregation and a bad salary better than many parsons would have
been able to do.
CHURCH OF THE ENGLISH MARTYRS.
To this church a name which is general property has been given. Each
of our religious sects can number its martyrs. In the good old times
cruelty was a reciprocal thing amongst professing Christians; it was
a pre-eminently mutual affair amongst the two great religious
parties in the land--the Protestants and the Catholics,--for when
one side got into power they slaughtered their opponents, and when
the other became paramount the compliment was returned. The church
we have here to describe is dedicated to those English Catholics
who, in the stormy days of persecution, were martyred. It is
situated on the northern side of the town, in a new and rapidly
increasing part of Preston, at the extreme south-western corner of
what used to be called Preston Moor, and on the very spot where men
used to be hanged often, and get their heads cut off occasionally.
"Gallows Hill" is the exact site of the Church of the English
Martyrs. And this "hill" is associated with a movement constituting
one of the rugged points in our history. The rebellion of 1715
virtually collapsed at Preston; many fights and skirmishes were
indulged in, one or two breezy passages of arms even took place
within a good stone-throw of the ground occupied by the Church of
the English Martyrs; but the King's troops finally prevailed.
According to an old book before us there were "taken at Preston"--
amongst the rebels--"seven lords, besides 1,490 other, including the
several gentlemen, officers, and private men, and two clergymen."
And the book further says, in a humorously sarcastic mood, "There
was a Popish priest called Littleton among them; but having a great
deal of the Jesuit he contrived a most excellent disguise, for he
put on a blue apron, went behind an apothecary's counter, and passed
for an assistant or journeyman to the apothecary, and so took an
opportunity of getting off." But all the captured rebels did not
escape so adroitly as our Jesuitical friend Littleton; for several
of them were either hanged or beheaded, and the fate of many was
sealed on the site of the Church of the English Martyrs. On the 5th
of January, 1715, we are told that sixteen rebels "were hanged upon
Gallows Hill, for high treason and conspiracy." In the following
year "42 condemned prisoners of all religions were hanged and
decapitated at Preston;" and amongst them were five belonging
Preston and the neighbourhood. They were "Richard Shuttleworth, of
Preston, Esq.; Roger Moncaster, of Garstang, attorney; Thomas Cowpe,
of Walton-le-Dale; William Butler, of Myerscough, Esq.; William
Arkwright, of Preston, gentleman;" and all of them were put to death
on Gallows Hill the cost being for "materialls, hurdle, fire, cart,
&c.," and for "setting up" Shuttleworth's head, &c., 12 pounds 0s
4d. There can be no doubt that Gallows Hill derives its name
directly from the transactions of 1715-16. Prior to that time it was
a simple mound; after that period it became associated with hangings
and beheadings, and received the name of "Gallows Hill," which was
peculiarly appropriate.
In May, 1817, "Gallows Hill" was cut through, so that "the great
north road to Lancaster" might be improved. Whilst this was being
done two coffins were found, and in them there were discovered two
headless bodies. Local historians think they were the remains of
"two rebel chieftains;" they may have been; but there is no proof of
this, although the fair supposition is that they were the
decapitated remnants of two somebodies, who had assumed a rebellious
attitude in 1715. It is probable that the heads of these parties
were "exposed on poles in front of our Town-hall," for that was an
olden practice, and was considered very legitimate 154 years ago. We
have spoken of the "discoveries" of 1817, and in continuing our
remarks it may be said that "near the spot" some timber, supposed to
have been the gallows, was once found, and that a brass hand-axe was
dug up not far from it, at the same time. The Moor, which amongst
other things embraced the "hill" we have mentioned, was a rough
wildish place--a rude looking common; but it seems to have been well
liked by the people, for upon it they used to hold trade meetings,
political demonstrations, &c.; and for 65 years--from 1726 to 1791--
horse races were annually run upon it. The Corporation and the
freemen of the borough once had a great dispute as to their
respective claims to the Moor, and the latter by way of asserting
their rights, put upon it an old white horse; but the Corporation
were not to be cajoled out of their ownership by an argument so very
"horsey" as this; they ordered the animal off; and Mr. J. Dearden,
who still obeys their injunctions with courteous precision, put it
into a pinfold hard by.
The Church of the English Martyrs was erected not long ago upon that
part of the Moor we have described. Originally the promoters of the
church treated for a plot of land about 20 yards above the present
site; but the negotiations were broken off, and afterwards they
bought Wren Cottage and a stable adjoining, situated about a quarter
of a mile northwards. The house was made available for the priest;
the stable was converted into a church; and mass was said in it for
the first time on Christmas morning, 1864. On the 21st of January,
1865, it was formally "opened;" the Revs. Canon Walker, T. Walton,
and F. Soden taking part in the services of the day. During 1865
preparations were made for erecting a new church upon the same site;
but some of the gentlemen living in the immediate neighbourhood took
offence at the movement, and insisted upon certain stipulations
contained in the covenants, which barred out the construction of
such a building as a church or a chapel, being carried out. There
was a considerable amount of Corporation discussion in respect to
the question, and eventually the idea of erecting a church upon the
land was abandoned. Directly afterwards, "Gallows Hill," in which
both the Corporation and Mr. Samuel Pole Shaw had rights, was
purchased as a site for it. Operations, involving the removal of an
immense quantity of earth--for the place was nothing more than a
high, rough, sandy hillock,--were commenced on the 26th of March,
1866. On the 26th of May, in the same year, the foundation-stone was
laid, with great ceremony, by Dr. Goss, and on the 12th of December,
1867, the church was opened. Mr. E. W. Pugin designed the building,
which externally does not look very wonderful at present; but, when
completed, it will be a handsome place. The original design includes
a beautiful steeple, surmounted with pinnacles; but want of funds
precludes its erection.
The church is a high double-roofed edifice--looks like two
buildings, one placed above the other; and, owing to the absence of
a steeple, it seems very tall and bald. It has a pretty western
gable, which can only be fully appreciated by close inspection. The
centre of this gable is occupied by a fine eight-light window, and
the general work is surmounted by pinnacles and ornamental masonry.
Two angels, cut in stone, originally formed part of the
ornamentation; but during a strong gale, early in 1868, they were
blown down. These "fallen angels" have never regained their first
estate; and as they might only tumble down if re-fixed, and perhaps
kill somebody, which would not be a very angelic proceeding, we
suppose they will not be interfered with.
The church has an imposing, a noble interior. It is wide, lofty, has
a fine calm majestic look, and is excellently arranged. The nave,
which is 69 feet high, is supported by 14 stone pillars. From nearly
any point every part of the building may be seen; the nave pillars,
do not, as is the case in some churches, obstruct the vision; and
everything seems easy, clear, and open. In the daytime a rich
shadowy light is thrown into the church by the excellent disposition
of its windows; at eventide the sheen of the setting sun, caught by
the western window, falls like a bright flood down the nave, and
makes the scene beautiful. The high altar is a fine piece of
workmanship; is of Gothic design, is richly carved, is ornamented
with marbles, has a canopy of most elaborate construction, and is in
good harmony with the general architecture. Two small altars are
near it. One of them, dedicated to St. Joseph, and given by Mr. J.
Pyke, of this town, is particularly handsome; the other, dedicated
to the Blessed Virgin, is of a less costly, though very pretty,
character. Near one of the pillars on the north-eastern side there
stands a square wooden frame, which is called the pulpit. It is a
deliciously primitive and remarkably common-place concern; but it is
strong enough, and will have to stop where it is until money for
something better is raised. There are sittings in the church for 850
persons. On Sundays there are masses at eight, and half-past nine; a
regular service at eleven, and another at half-past six in the
evening. The aggregate attendance during the day is about 1,350. The
assemblage at the first mass is thin; at the second it is good--
better than at any other time; at eleven it is pretty numerous; and
in the evening it is fair. Adults and children from the union
workhouse, of the Catholic persuasion, attend the eleven o'clock
service; and they come in tolerable force--sometimes they number
100.
The general congregation consists nearly altogether of working class
people, and it includes some of the best sleepers we have seen. The
members of the choir sit in a gallery at the western end. Their
performances are of a curious description. Sometimes they sing very
well--are quite exact in their renderings and decidedly harmonious;
at other times they torture the music somewhat. But then they are
young at the business, haven't had so much experience, and have
nothing to rely upon in the shape of instrumental music except the
hard tones of an ordinary harmonium. Organ accompaniments help up
good choirs and materially drown the defects of bad ones. With
better instrumental assistance, the singers at the Church of the
English Martyrs would acquit themselves more satisfactorily, and
with additional practice they would still further improve matters.
There are two priests stationed at the church--the Rev. James Taylor
and the Rev. Joseph Pyke. Father Taylor, the principal, is a
blooming, healthy, full-spirited gentleman. He is a "Fylde man;" has
in him much strong straight-forwardness; looks as if he had never
ailed anything in his life; doesn't appear to have mortified the
flesh very acutely; seems to have taken things comfortably and well
since the day of his birth; has not allowed his creed to spoil his
face--a trick which some professors of religion are guilty of; and
is, on the whole, a genuine specimen of the true John Bull type.
Father Taylor's first mission was at Lancaster, under the late Dean
Brown; afterwards he came to St. Augustine's, Preston, where he
remained four and a half years; then he was appointed Catholic
chaplain at the House of Correction; and subsequently he took charge
of his present mission. He is an active man, and works very hard in
his district. As a preacher he is energetic, impetuous, and
practical--speaks plainly and straight out, minces nothing, and
tries to drive what he considers to be the truth right home. He has
very little rhetorical action, hardly moves at all in the pulpit,
stirs neither head nor hand except upon special occasions; but he
has a powerful voice, he pours out his words in a strong, full
volume, and the force he has in this respect compensates for the
general immobility he displays during his discourses.
His colleague--the Rev. J. Pyke--is a small, mild gentleman,
unassuming in manner, cautious, careful, quiet, precise, and, whilst
attending to his duties regularly, he makes no bluster about them.
He was ordained at the Church of the English Martyrs, in September,
1868. In the pulpit he is earnest, clear, and regular in his
remarks. He makes no repetitions, flings himself into no attitudes,
assumes no airs, but proceeds on to the end steadily and calmly.
Both the priests named live close to the church, in a building which
forms part of the property of the mission. It is intended some time
to have a proper presbytery, near the church: one is included in
the original plan; but shortness of funds bars its erection. The
work thus far executed--the church, vestries, &c.--has cost about
8,000 pounds, and there still remains upon the buildings a debt of
about 4,000 pounds. There are no schools in connection with the
church; but it is expected that there will be by and bye. The land
formerly used as the cattle market, and situated near the church,
has been bought for this purpose, and collectors are now engaged in
raising money towards the erection of the schools. The church has
two or three "guilds," the female members thereof numbering about
200, and the males 100. In the "district" there are about 3,000
Catholics, including 700 children under 10 years of age; so that the
priests in charge of it have quite enough on hand for the present. A
mission in debt to the tune of 4,000 pounds; a church to internally
complete--for much yet remains to be finished in the one described;
a church tower which will cost 2,000 pounds to raise; a presbytery
to begin of; schools, which are primarily essential, to erect; and
7,000 human beings to look after, constitute what may fairly be
termed "no joke."
ST. SAVIOUR'S CHURCH.
Few districts are more thoroughly vitiated, more distinctly poverty-
struck, more entirely at enmity with soap and water than that in
which this church stands. Physically, mentally, and spiritually, it
is in a state of squash and mildew. Heathenism seethes in it, and
something even more potent than a forty-parson power of virtue will
be required to bring it to healthy consciousness and legitimate
action. You needn't go to the low slums of London, needn't smuggle
yourself round with detectives into the back dens of big cities if
you want to see "sights" of poverty and depravity; you can have them
nearer home--at home--in the murky streets, sinister courts, crowded
houses, dim cellars, and noisy drinking dens of St. Saviour's
district. Pass through it, move quietly along its parapets--leaving
a tour through its internal institutions for some future occasion--
and you will see enough to convince you that many missionaries, with
numerous Bibles and piles of blankets, are yet wanted at home before
being despatched to either farthest land or the plains of Timbuctoo.
The general scene may be thus condensed and described: Myriads of
children, ragged, sore-headed, bare-legged, dirty, and amazingly
alive amid all of it; wretched-looking matrons, hugging saucy,
screaming infants to their breasts, and sending senior youngsters
for either herring, or beer, or very small loaves; strong, idle
young men hanging about street corners with either dogs at their
feet, or pigeon-baskets in their hands; little shops driving a brisk
"booking" business with either females wearing shawls over their
heads or children wearing nothing at all on their feet; bevies of
brazen-faced hussies looking out of grim doorways for more victims
and more drink; stray soldiers struggling about beer or dram shops
entrances, with dissolute, brawny-armed females; and wandering old
hags with black eyes and dishevelled hair, closing up the career of
shame and ruin they have so long and so wretchedly run.
Anybody may see the sights we have just described. We mention this
not because there is anything pleasing in it, but because it is
something which exists daily in the heart of our town--in the centre
of St. Saviour's district. No locality we know of stands more in
need of general redemption than this, and any Christian church, no
matter whatever may be its denominational peculiarities, which may
exist in it, deserves encouragement and support. The district is so
supremely poor, and so absolutely bad, that anything calculated to
improve or enlighten it in any way is worthy of assistance. A
Baptist chapel was built in the quarter we are now describing--it
was erected in Leeming-street, at the corner of Queen-street--in
1783. Fifty years afterwards it was enlarged; subsequently the
Baptists couldn't agree amongst themselves; the parties to the
quarrel then separated, some going to Pole-street Chapel, others
forming a new "church"--that now in Fishergate; and on the 10th of
August, 1859, the old building was bought by certain gentlemen
connected with the Church of England. A young man, named William
Dent Thompson, strong in constitution, greatly enamoured of
Reformation principles, keenly polemical, and brought up under the
aegis of the Rev. Geo. Alker, was appointed superintendent of the
place. He stayed awhile, then went away, and was succeeded by the
Rev. Geo. Donaldson, who in turn left for Blackburn, and was
followed by the Rev. Geo. Beardsell, the present incumbent of All
Saints' in this town. Mr. Beardsell did an excellent business in the
district--worked it up well and most praiseworthily; but he, in
time, left.