Five Ash Down Independent Chapel facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Five Ash Down Chapel |
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| Five Ash Down Independent Chapel | |
The chapel in 2010, seen from the west
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 Location in East Sussex
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| 50°59′45″N 0°10′54″E / 50.9958°N 0.1816°E | |
| Location | A26, Five Ash Down, Uckfield, East Sussex TN22 3AL |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Denomination | Evangelical |
| Previous denomination | Independent Calvinistic |
| Churchmanship | Independent Reformed Evangelical |
| History | |
| Status | Church |
| Founded | 1773 |
| Founder(s) | Thomas Dicker junior |
| Events | 1784: opened in present building 1852: extended 1896: refronted |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Architectural type | Chapel |
| Style | Early English Gothic Revival |
| Years built | 1784 |
| Completed | April 1784 |
The Five Ash Down Independent Chapel is an independent Evangelical church. It follows the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition. You can find it in the small village, or hamlet, of Five Ash Down in East Sussex, England.
This church started in 1773 in the home of a local man named Thomas Dicker senior. The group grew very quickly. Just 11 years later, a church was officially formed, and a building was put up for the people to worship in. At first, the church followed Calvinistic ideas. Many new chapels in Sussex in the late 1700s were like this.
A group of people who left this church later started a new chapel in nearby Uckfield. This new church followed Baptist beliefs. The Five Ash Down chapel is known for inspiring many other places of worship, both Baptist and Independent, across Sussex. It is still active today as a small Evangelical group. They still meet in the original chapel. The building looks different now because it was made bigger and given a new front during the Victorian era.
How the Chapel Started
In East Sussex, a type of Protestant Christianity called Nonconformism was very important from the 1600s onwards. Many groups following Calvinistic ideas grew in different places from the mid-1700s. The Calvinism in Sussex was based on the ideas of Puritans from the 1500s. This was spread by travelling preachers who often spoke outdoors.
Several chapels, like Zoar Strict Baptist Chapel and Golden Cross Chapel, were started in the Dicker area. This was a rural area near the towns of Eastbourne and Hailsham. The Dicker family was a well-known family of landowners in East Sussex for a long time.
In 1772, a Church of England clergyman named Rev. Richard de Courcy visited Uckfield. He gave a powerful sermon to a large crowd. Thomas Dicker junior (born in 1723) was in the crowd. He was part of the Dicker family and lived in nearby Buxted parish. Before this, he went to the local Church of England church. But after hearing de Courcy's sermon, he became interested in the Calvinist ideas. He started holding meetings about these ideas at his house in Five Ash Down. This hamlet is about 1.2 kilometers northwest of Buxted village.
Over the next 11 years, more and more people came to these meetings. His house became too small. So, services were also held at a nearby inn for a while. It was at this inn that William Huntington, a very important person in Sussex Calvinist history, met another Calvinist missionary, Jenkin Jenkins from Lewes. They became close friends. Later, they both helped start Jireh Chapel in Lewes, which became one of the biggest Calvinist churches in Sussex.
Building the Chapel
In 1784, Thomas Dicker senior, Thomas Dicker junior's father, gave some land next to his house to the church group. He had also become interested in the Calvinist ideas in 1773. The group built a chapel on this land in early 1784. It opened in April of that year.
Unlike the local Church of England churches, the Nonconformists used a "simpler way of worship." However, the church officially agreed with the same articles of faith as the Church of England.
Changes and Growth
In early 1785, the church group had a disagreement about the idea of baptism. The main difference between Calvinistic Independents and a type of Baptist church called Strict and Particular Baptists is about baptism. For Strict Baptists, "baptism is the way to join the church, and communion [a religious meal] should only be for church members."
Some members of the Five Ash Down Chapel preferred the stricter baptism idea. They left and formed a new church following Strict Baptist rules. This happened at a farm in Uckfield on May 15, 1785. Land was bought for a bigger chapel in 1788, and Uckfield Baptist Church opened in February 1789. The first pastor (leader) at Five Ash Down Chapel, A. Dixon, left soon after this. For many years, visiting ministers led services, including William Huntington several times.
More land was bought next to the chapel in 1840. This allowed a Sunday school building to be put up around 1852. Also in 1852, the chapel was made bigger and changed. This was done to remember Thomas Dicker senior by his grandson. More changes happened in 1896 when the chapel got a new roof and a new front. This new front gave it its current Gothic Revival style.
By this time, the chapel had a pastor living there again. A permanent Sunday school started in 1880. After about 100 years, during which four pastors led the chapel, it went back to having visiting ministers from 1962. This happened when Joseph Turner retired after being the pastor for 38 years.
The chapel is officially registered for worship. It is now known as Five Ash Down Chapel. It is an Evangelical church that is independent and follows Reformed church ideas. They have services on Sundays in the morning and afternoon, and a Sunday school. There is also a prayer meeting on Thursday evenings. The church's old records are kept at the East Sussex Record Office.
Chapel Design
When it was first built, the chapel was a simple building made of brick. Part of the original north wall, which is about 6 meters long, is still there. After it was rebuilt and given a new front in the Victorian era, it got an Early English Gothic Revival look.
It is built with blue bricks and has red brick quoins (corner stones). The front of the chapel faces west and is balanced on both sides. It has three sections, each with a pointed top called a gable. Each section has a tall, narrow window called a stone lancet window. The side sections that stick out were added in 1852. The middle section, which is set back, was built in 1896.
The original building faced a different way. What is now the side wall, facing north, was actually the back of the chapel before. There is a graveyard in front of the chapel. Inside, there is a gallery (a raised seating area) that might still have parts from the 1700s building.
See also
