Belper Baptist Church

Belper Baptist Church
Belper Baptist Church
Belper Baptist Church Location within Derbyshire
53°01′32″N 1°29′8″W
Location	Belper, Derbyshire
Country	England
Denomination	Baptist
Website	belperbaptist.org
Architecture
Architect(s)	S.R. Bakewell of Belper
Groundbreaking	7 August 1893
Completed	5 August 1894; 130 years ago (1894-08-05)

Belper Baptist Church is a Baptist Chapel on Bridge Street in Belper, Derbyshire, England.

History

The Baptist presence in Belper was formed from a congregation at Duffield in 1817. A chapel was built and was in use by 1819.

It was built to replace an earlier chapel which the congregation had outgrown. Plans were developed in 1877. The land in Bridge Street was purchased for £518 and this debt was paid off by 1885, when fund-raising for construction started.

By Easter 1893, the congregation had raised enough money to lay the foundation stone of the new building. The foundation stone was laid on 7 August 1893.[1]

It was designed by S. R. Bakewell C.E. of Belper, and the contractor was A. Hingley of Duffield.[2] It was constructed with Darley Dale stone, relieved with cornices, strings and arches of dressed stone. The total cost was around £2,700.

Organ

The church had a pipe organ by J.M. Grunwell dating from 1874 which was originally in the home of Thomas Barker Mellor. It was moved into the Baptist Church in 1901. A specification of the organ can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register.[3] It was removed in 1994 and transferred to Holy Trinity Church, Milford.^[citation needed]

References

1. "New Baptist Church, Belper". Sheffield Independent. England. 8 August 1893. Retrieved 11 January 2019 – via British Newspaper Archive.
2. "Opening of Belper Baptist Chapel". Derbyshire Courier. England. 11 August 1894. Retrieved 11 January 2019 – via British Newspaper Archive.
3. "NPOR [D06282]". National Pipe Organ Register. British Institute of Organ Studies. Retrieved 12 January 2019.