- Nprn: 10624
- Cadw Record No: 20750
- Summary: Bethany Baptist Chapel is a handsome gothic urban chapel designed by the local architect E. A. Johnson of Abergavenny, who designed much of the late nineteenth-century Abergavenny. Unusually for a chapel his name and that of the Abergavenny builder, J.G. Thomas, both appear on the foundation stone, perhaps reflecting Johnson's high status and aspirations in the town. A chapel had been first built by this congregation or cause in 1828 but the present building dates from 1882.
Nationally known architects such as Thomas Thomas had pioneered the use of flanking 'wings' or roof-level projections, over side stairs to upper galleries, to improve the look of the previous 'big shed' profile of simple and earlier chapel fronts and this idea is used here to improve the impressive main south-western front. That main show front is distinguished from the local stone-built rear and south-eastern (right-hand) side of the chapel and basement Sunday School (sunk into the valley of the adjacent culverted stream), by being built in the more fashionable brick with ashlar worked-stone dressings. Interestingly the left-hand (north-western) side of the chapel was very visible to passers-by in Market Street and so its upper storeys are also in brick. There is a vestry on the rear of the building. The main windows on the front are a variant of geometric decorated style with some influence of the north-Italian Lombardic style then popular. The side chapel windows are in the simple 'Early English' lancet style while the basement windows are domestic in character. The surrounding iron railings and gates, characteristic of chapels, are as usual a local design, in this case by W A Baker & Co Ltd. of the Westgate Ironworks, Newport.
Johnson also designed the Whitefield Memorial English Presbyterian Chapel in Abergavenny (1907-10) and the Unitarian Chapel in Merthyr Tydfil (1901-03) in more modern Edwardian style.
When visited in 1998 Bethany was disused and when revisited on 23.04.08 it was marked as being sold. The chapel is listed as an historic building by Cadw.
RCAHMW, 2008 - using the Cadw listed building description & notes on 'chapel architects' by Julian Orbach. - Description: Built in 1828, modified, altered or rebuilt 1882, architect E.A.Johnson and builder J.E.Thomas, both of Abergavenny. Present status [1998]: disused
The same design used for the railings and gates at the Bethany Chapel appears in a contemporary pattern book issued by W A Baker & Co Ltd, Architectural Ironfounders of Westgate Ironworks, Newport, Monmouthshire (information from Cadw list description of 27/10/1998). - Built: 1828 Source:RCCEORBWM
- Built: 1882 Source:Cadw
- Built: 1882 Source:Cadw
- Furniture Warehouse: By 1998 Source:Cadw
- Museum Of Childhood: Pre 1997 Source:Freer, J
- Gates, Wall & Railings: 1882 Source:Cadw
- Date Of Chapel: 1882 Source:
- Builder: 1882 J.E. Thomas, Abergavenny
- Architect: 1882 Edwin Arthur Johnson, Abergavenny
- £ 1240: 1882 (Cadw)
- £ 2000: 1905 (RCCEORBWM)
- £ 1600: 1882 (BOW)
- 380: 1905 Sittings (RCCEORBWM)
- Converted: 27/10/1998 Furniture warehouse (Cadw)
- Disused: 2006 (Capel Newsletter)
- Converted: 2011 Being renovated (Website)
- Materials
- Brick
- Monument Type: CHAPEL
- Form: Building
- Storey: Two Storey and Basement
- Style: Gothic
- Plan: Gable Entry
- Window Glazing: Tracery
- Windows: Rose Window
Key Details of this Chapel
Key Dates of this Chapel
Key People in this Chapel History
Costs during this Chapels History
Capacities during this Chapels History
Changes of Status its History
Key Characteristics of this Chapel
Images from Coflein
Map
- Grid Reference: SO29991429
- Address: MARKET ST, ABERGAVENNY
2 thoughts on “BETHANY BAPTIST CHAPEL, MARKET STREET, ABERGAVENNY (WAREHOUSE)”
Leave a Reply Cancel Reply
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Hello
My great great grandparents were married in Kinnerton Chapel in Old Radnor on 21st May1850. I have been searching for information on the Chapel, so was pleased to find this website. I have now located it on Google Street View – looks like someone is ‘doing it up’ to live in: https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@52.2612635,-3.1095337,3a,90y,232.95h,84.26t/data=!3m9!1e1!3m7!1s-8DWPORkq2RFVNXBLde_-g!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!9m2!1b1!2i53?hl=en-GB
The marriage record of my ancestors Abraham Bounds and Elizabeth Williams is attached. I hope it is of interest.
All the best
Saira
Dear Sara
Thank you for the information. I am glad to hear that it was some help to you.
Good luck on your continued search
Christine