Above Bar Church, Southampton facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Above Bar Church
Location	Above Bar Church 69 Above Bar Street Southampton SO14 7FE
Denomination	Independent (affiliated to Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches)
Website	www.abovebarchurch.org.uk
History
Founded	1876
Founder(s)	Henry Samuel Earl
Architecture
Architect(s)	Robert Potter of Brandt Potter Associates
Style	Modernist
Years built	1981

Above Bar Church is an evangelical church located in Southampton, England. It is part of the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches. The church building is on the corner of Above Bar Street and Ogle Road in Southampton City Centre. It has shops on the ground floor, with the main church hall and other rooms located above them.

The Church's Story

This section shares the history of Above Bar Church. It is based on a booklet called Past and Present, which the church published when its new building opened in 1981.

How the Church Began

Above Bar Church started in 1876. A missionary named Henry Samuel Earl founded it. He was part of the Foreign Christian Missionary Society. Earl began preaching in February 1876. He held services at the Philharmonic Rooms on Above Bar Street. A local choir helped with singing. A minister's widow played the organ.

More than 700 people came to the first service. Even more came the next week, despite a snowstorm. By the third Sunday, the hall was completely full. Many of these people already belonged to other churches. But a regular group of churchgoers soon formed.

Henry Earl rented a small Baptist church. It was being used as a warehouse. He had it repaired and furnished. It could seat over 300 people. Earl filled this building on Sunday mornings. He also started week-night services. A Sunday School began too. The church was officially formed in August 1876. It started with 33 members.

A clothing maker named Timothy Coop helped the church. He donated £3,000. This money was for buying land and building a permanent church. Earl bought a plot of land for £1,000. It was 60 feet wide. He also bought three more lots on Ogle Road for £300. One of these was a skating rink. Volunteers from the church took apart the skating rink. They used its bricks and windows for the new church building. This new building opened in 1880.

On August 17, 1886, a special document was signed. It gave ownership of the church and land to its trustees. The church was then called 'Church of Christ, Above Bar'. Henry Earl stayed in Southampton for less than ten years. During that time, he helped about 400 people become Christians. The church membership grew to over 100. Earl passed leadership to Aurelius Glidden. The church continued to grow. Over the next 25 years, six more ministers led the church. Most of them were Americans. The church slowly became more independent. It relied less on the American Church of Christ. It also became more financially stable.

Years of Growth: 1912 to 1979

In 1912, a new minister, Frederick Phillips, joined the church. He had been an electrical engineer. Phillips had also been a leader at a nearby church. He had led a mission church in Winchester before this. In 1917, the church fully separated from the American denomination. British Churches of Christ could join a national group or become independent. Above Bar Church chose to be independent.

The church continued to grow during World War I. By the early 1920s, membership reached 400. The church services had even larger crowds. Phillips served as minister for 40 years. He retired in 1952 at age 82. He remembered when only 20 people came to morning services. He said it was "wonderful how God has brought it up." Another minister noted how many people had become Christians through the church.

Leith Samuel took over as minister after Phillips. He served for 27 years. Leith Samuel was a gifted speaker and Bible teacher. He strongly believed in teaching the Bible clearly. During his time, the church changed a lot. It was renamed Above Bar Church. The church became more focused on world missions. Small Bible study groups started in homes. More assistant ministers and helpers were hired.

By the 1970s, the church building was nearly 100 years old. It was built with a small budget. The building was showing its age badly. In May 1976, a big crack appeared in the ceiling. It became clear that repairs would cost £150,000. Even with repairs, the building would still be old and hard to use. It had very few extra rooms.

For several years, developers wanted to use the church's good location. With urgent repairs needed, a new idea came up. A developer suggested building shops on the ground floor. The church would be above them. It would still have an entrance on Above Bar Street. The church liked this plan. They hired Robert Potter as the architect. Royal Insurance Investment Department took over the project. They paid a large part of the building costs. The last service in the old building was on July 1, 1979.

The Church Since 1980

David Jackman became the Senior Minister in 1980. He had been an Assistant Minister since 1976. The new church building opened in 1981. It offered much better facilities than the old one. The main church hall, called the auditorium, seats over 400 people. Robert Potter designed it as a hexagon. This shape is like an amphitheatre. The seats are angled towards the front. The ceiling is made of Columbian pine wood. Much of the other wood is beech. The communion table was made for the new building from English elm wood. The basement was almost not included in the project. But it has about the same space as the old church hall. The top hall is much larger. The church's organ was built between 1977 and 1979. It was used in the old building for a few months before it was torn down.

In 1991, David Jackman left to start a training course. After about five years, Dr. John Balchin became Senior Minister in January 1997. He retired in 2004. John Risbridger took his place in September 2004. Paul Webber joined the staff in 2011. Tim Sutton joined in 2013. Sutton later moved to another church in September 2016. Paul Webber became the Minister for Mission. In September 2019, Chris Webb was appointed as Minister for Discipleship. Paul Webber resigned in 2020. John Risbridger resigned in 2022. Jonathan Berry became the Senior Minister in July 2023. He was officially welcomed on September 16, 2023.