Masbrough Independent Chapel facts for kids

The Masbrough Independent Chapel (also known as Masbro Chapel) was a special church building in the Masbrough area of Rotherham. It was a Congregationalist chapel, which is a type of Christian church where each local church manages itself. It existed from the 1700s until the 1970s. At that time, it joined the United Reformed Church.

The chapel stayed part of the United Reformed Church until it closed as a place of worship. This happened towards the end of the 1900s. The people who went to this church later joined with another church group in Greasbrough. In 2003, they also joined with a Methodist church group. Together, they formed a new church called Greasbrough United Church.

The old chapel building was considered important for its history and architecture. After it stopped being a church, it was used as a carpet warehouse. Sadly, the building had two big fires in 2012. It was then taken down in December 2012.

The chapel was very connected to the Walker family. They were important business owners in Rotherham. Their family burial place, called the Walker Mausoleum, is still in the chapel's old burial ground. This Mausoleum is also a protected historic building.

The chapel was also linked to the Rotherham Independent Academy. This school trained people to become ministers. It started in 1795. Later, in the 1800s, the Academy moved to new buildings. These buildings are now used by the Thomas Rotherham College.

In 1795, a minister named Dr Edward Williams became the pastor at the chapel. He also became the first teacher at the new Rotherham Independent Academy. Joshua and Thomas Walker gave a lot of money to help the Academy. Dr Williams was also involved in starting a missionary group in 1794. This group later became known as the London Missionary Society.

During the time of Reverend Thomas Nicholson (1879–1900), the number of people attending the church grew a lot. It went from 225 to 530 people. In the 1920s and 1930s, during a tough economic time called the Depression, the church helped people. They built a bowling green for unemployed men to enjoy. They also held classes to teach things like boot repair. This helped people get through the difficult times.

In the 1950s, the chapel's minister, Cyril Grant, helped start a new church. This new church was in Herringthorpe and is now called the Herringthorpe United Reformed Church. It first met in rented rooms. Later, it moved into its own building.

The Chapel's Early Days

The Walker Family: Iron Masters

Three brothers named Jonathan (1710–1778), Samuel (1715–1782), and Aaron (1718–1777) Walker came to the Masbrough area in 1746. Aaron was a farm worker. He and a relative, John Crawshaw, had started trying out ways to melt and shape metal around 1741. Samuel was a school teacher. He also measured land and made sun-dials before joining his brothers in business.

The brothers built places to melt metal, furnaces, and a smithy (a place where metal is worked) in Masbrough. They built a forge that used water power in 1754. In 1758, they added a blast furnace and a rolling mill. In just a few decades, they made their business one of the biggest iron and steel companies in the country. They became the top iron masters in the North of England. Even the Cannon on English ships at the famous Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 were made in the Walker family's factories!

These brothers were the sons of Joseph Walker (1673–1729), who made nails. Samuel and Aaron were among the first people to join a big religious movement in the 1700s. Important leaders in this movement included George Whitfield and John Wesley.

John Thorp's Story

John Thorp was once with a group of friends in a pub. They decided to make a bet. Each person would pretend to preach like the serious preachers of the religious movement. John was the last one to go. He said he would easily win the bet. But as he started to "preach," something changed. He became serious and stopped joking. He found himself speaking real, heartfelt words that he had meant as a joke. Everyone listening became quiet as they noticed the change in him. John's life was completely changed after that day. He decided to dedicate his life to sharing the Gospel.

Starting the Masbrough Church

The Masbrough church group started around 1760. John Thorp became their first minister. In 1762 or 1763, Samuel and Aaron Walker built the first Meetinghouse for the church. John Thorp stayed as the minister for sixteen years until he passed away in 1776.

The Chapel's Name Change

The word "Independent" was removed from the chapel's name in the 1970s. This happened when the church joined the United Reformed Church. After that, it was simply known as "Masbro Chapel." Sometimes, it was called "Masbro Chapel (United Reformed)."

Ministers of the Chapel

Many ministers served the Masbrough Chapel over the years. Here are some of them:

• John Thorp (1760–1776)
• Thomas Grove (1777–1793)
• Dr Edward Williams (1795–1813)
• Dr James Bennett (1813-c.1828)
• Clement Perrot (1829–1834)
• Dr William Hendry Stowell (c.1834–1849)
• Alexander Raleigh (1850–1855)
• Isaac Vaughan (1858–1865)
• William John Gates (1866–1878)
• Thomas Nicholson (1879–1900)
• James Siddall Drummond (1902–1916)
• John Henry Cox (1918–1924)
• Norman Castles (1926–1935)
• William Silver (1937–1947)
• Cyril Handel Grant MBE (1952– c.1958)
• William Unsworth (c. 1960–1986)
• John Ashley Hardaker (1990 – ? )