- Nprn: 6445
- Cadw Ref: 24/A/26(1)
- Cadw Record No: 11911
- Summary: Glenalla Chapel was built in 1909, in the Romanesque style of the gable entry type, to the design of architect William Griffiths of Llanelli. The chapel was refurbished in 1991 but is now a Community Centre. The building is listed Grade 2.
RCAHMW, June 2009 - Description: Glenalla Calvinistic Methodist Chapel, 1909
This is a fairly late chapel of 1909 by the local architect William Griffiths but typical of the period in mixing architectural styles. It also has no less than three entrance doors. The wide five-bay façade has small hipped-roofs to the outer bays in order to dissipate the large shed-like outline so often found in large nineteenth-century nonconformist chapels. The central upper windows have tracery that originated in fifteenth-century Florence but divided by narrow blank stilted arches elongated above their capitals as seen in the Byzantine porch designs of Santa Fosca at Torrcello in the Venetian lagoon built in the twelth century and in palaces on the Grand Canal in Venice itself. The chapel sides are very plain. The design was conservative at this late date, when few chapels were constructed, in sticking to traditional Italianate and round-headed design elements rather then experimenting with establishment gothic.
Stephen R. Hughes 06.09.2007 using the following main sources: the Capel Newsletter 34 (Autumn 1999), Capel Local Information Sheet 16 on Llanelli; T. Lloyd, J. Orbach & R. Scourfield, The Buildings of Wales, Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion (Yale, New Haven & The Buildings of Wales) 2006 & chapels on The Royal Commission on the Ancient & Historical Monuments of Wales database at www.coflein.gov.uk & Royal Commission on the Church of England and other Religious Bodies in Wales and Monmouthshire, Volume VI, Appendices to the Minutes of Evidence Nonconformist County Statistics 1911, Carmarthenshire (collected 1905), (London, HMSO) 1911, p.82 & Stephen Hughes, 'Thomas Thomas, 1817-88: the first national architect of Wales', Archaeologia Cambrensis 152 (2003), pp. 69-166.
Chapel built 1909 in Romanesque style, gable entry type, to the design of William Griffiths of Llanelli, whose drawings, as at 1992, survived in the Llanelli offices of W Griffiths Son & Lewis. Refurbished in 1991. Building is listed Grade 2. Status (1998): other (Community Centre). Date of present building 1909.Glenalla Calvinistic Methodist Chapel, 1909
This is a fairly late chapel of 1909 by the local architect William Griffiths but typical of the period in mixing architectural styles. It also has no less than three entrance doors. The wide five-bay façade has small hipped-roofs to the outer bays in order to dissipate the large shed-like outline so often found in large nineteenth-century nonconformist chapels. The central upper windows have tracery that originated in fifteenth-century Florence but divided by narrow blank stilted arches elongated above their capitals as seen in the Byzantine porch designs of Santa Fosca at Torrcello in the Venetian lagoon built in the twelth century and in palaces on the Grand Canal in Venice itself. The chapel sides are very plain. The design was conservative at this late date, when few chapels were constructed, in sticking to traditional Italianate and round-headed design elements rather then experimenting with establishment gothic.
Stephen R. Hughes 06.09.2007 using the following main sources: the Capel Newsletter 34 (Autumn 1999), Capel Local Information Sheet 16 on Llanelli; T. Lloyd, J. Orbach & R. Scourfield, The Buildings of Wales, Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion (Yale, New Haven & The Buildings of Wales) 2006 & chapels on The Royal Commission on the Ancient & Historical Monuments of Wales database at www.coflein.gov.uk & Royal Commission on the Church of England and other Religious Bodies in Wales and Monmouthshire, Volume VI, Appendices to the Minutes of Evidence Nonconformist County Statistics 1911, Carmarthenshire (collected 1905), (London, HMSO) 1911, p.82 & Stephen Hughes, 'Thomas Thomas, 1817-88: the first national architect of Wales', Archaeologia Cambrensis 152 (2003), pp. 69-166.
Chapel built 1909 in Romanesque style, gable entry type, to the design of William Griffiths of Llanelli, whose drawings, as at 1992, survived in the Llanelli offices of W Griffiths Son & Lewis. Refurbished in 1991. Building is listed Grade 2. Status (1998): other (Community Centre). Date of present building 1909.Glenalla Calvinistic Methodist Chapel, 1909
This is a fairly late chapel of 1909 by the local architect William Griffiths but typical of the period in mixing architectural styles. It also has no less than three entrance doors. The wide five-bay façade has small hipped-roofs to the outer bays in order to dissipate the large shed-like outline so often found in large nineteenth-century nonconformist chapels. The central upper windows have tracery that originated in fifteenth-century Florence but divided by narrow blank stilted arches elongated above their capitals as seen in the Byzantine porch designs of Santa Fosca at Torrcello in the Venetian lagoon built in the twelth century and in palaces on the Grand Canal in Venice itself. The chapel sides are very plain. The design was conservative at this late date, when few chapels were constructed, in sticking to traditional Italianate and round-headed design elements rather then experimenting with establishment gothic.
Stephen R. Hughes 06.09.2007 using the following main sources: the Capel Newsletter 34 (Autumn 1999), Capel Local Information Sheet 16 on Llanelli; T. Lloyd, J. Orbach & R. Scourfield, The Buildings of Wales, Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion (Yale, New Haven & The Buildings of Wales) 2006 & chapels on The Royal Commission on the Ancient & Historical Monuments of Wales database at www.coflein.gov.uk & Royal Commission on the Church of England and other Religious Bodies in Wales and Monmouthshire, Volume VI, Appendices to the Minutes of Evidence Nonconformist County Statistics 1911, Carmarthenshire (collected 1905), (London, HMSO) 1911, p.82 & Stephen Hughes, 'Thomas Thomas, 1817-88: the first national architect of Wales', Archaeologia Cambrensis 152 (2003), pp. 69-166.
Chapel built 1909 in Romanesque style, gable entry type, to the design of William Griffiths of Llanelli, whose drawings, as at 1992, survived in the Llanelli offices of W Griffiths Son & Lewis. Refurbished in 1991. Building is listed Grade 2. Status (1998): other (Community Centre). Date of present building 1909.Glenalla Calvinistic Methodist Chapel, 1909
This is a fairly late chapel of 1909 by the local architect William Griffiths but typical of the period in mixing architectural styles. It also has no less than three entrance doors. The wide five-bay façade has small hipped-roofs to the outer bays in order to dissipate the large shed-like outline so often found in large nineteenth-century nonconformist chapels. The central upper windows have tracery that originated in fifteenth-century Florence but divided by narrow blank stilted arches elongated above their capitals as seen in the Byzantine porch designs of Santa Fosca at Torrcello in the Venetian lagoon built in the twelth century and in palaces on the Grand Canal in Venice itself. The chapel sides are very plain. The design was conservative at this late date, when few chapels were constructed, in sticking to traditional Italianate and round-headed design elements rather then experimenting with establishment gothic.
Stephen R. Hughes 06.09.2007 using the following main sources: the Capel Newsletter 34 (Autumn 1999), Capel Local Information Sheet 16 on Llanelli; T. Lloyd, J. Orbach & R. Scourfield, The Buildings of Wales, Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion (Yale, New Haven & The Buildings of Wales) 2006 & chapels on The Royal Commission on the Ancient & Historical Monuments of Wales database at www.coflein.gov.uk & Royal Commission on the Church of England and other Religious Bodies in Wales and Monmouthshire, Volume VI, Appendices to the Minutes of Evidence Nonconformist County Statistics 1911, Carmarthenshire (collected 1905), (London, HMSO) 1911, p.82 & Stephen Hughes, 'Thomas Thomas, 1817-88: the first national architect of Wales', Archaeologia Cambrensis 152 (2003), pp. 69-166.
Glenalla Calvinistic Methodist Chapel, 1909
This is a fairly late chapel of 1909 by the local architect William Griffiths but typical of the period in mixing architectural styles. It also has no less than three entrance doors. The wide five-bay façade has small hipped-roofs to the outer bays in order to dissipate the large shed-like outline so often found in large nineteenth-century nonconformist chapels. The central upper windows have tracery that originated in fifteenth-century Florence but divided by narrow blank stilted arches elongated above their capitals as seen in the Byzantine porch designs of Santa Fosca at Torrcello in the Venetian lagoon built in the twelth century and in palaces on the Grand Canal in Venice itself. The chapel sides are very plain. The design was conservative at this late date, when few chapels were constructed, in sticking to traditional Italianate and round-headed design elements rather then experimenting with establishment gothic.
Stephen R. Hughes 06.09.2007 using the following main sources: the Capel Newsletter 34 (Autumn 1999), Capel Local Information Sheet 16 on Llanelli; T. Lloyd, J. Orbach & R. Scourfield, The Buildings of Wales, Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion (Yale, New Haven & The Buildings of Wales) 2006 & chapels on The Royal Commission on the Ancient & Historical Monuments of Wales database at www.coflein.gov.uk & Royal Commission on the Church of England and other Religious Bodies in Wales and Monmouthshire, Volume VI, Appendices to the Minutes of Evidence Nonconformist County Statistics 1911, Carmarthenshire (collected 1905), (London, HMSO) 1911, p.82 & Stephen Hughes, 'Thomas Thomas, 1817-88: the first national architect of Wales', Archaeologia Cambrensis 152 (2003), pp. 69-166.
Chapel built 1909 in Romanesque style, gable entry type, to the design of William Griffiths of Llanelli, whose drawings, as at 1992, survived in the Llanelli offices of W Griffiths Son & Lewis. Refurbished in 1991. Building is listed Grade 2. Status (1998): other (Community Centre). Date of present building 1909.
Chapel built 1909 in Romanesque style, gable entry type, to the design of William Griffiths of Llanelli, whose drawings, as at 1992, survived in the Llanelli offices of W Griffiths Son & Lewis. Refurbished in 1991. Building is listed Grade 2. Status (1998): other (Community Centre). Date of present building 1909.
By 1998, converted into Community Centre, generously funded by Llanelli Town Council, e.g. masonry cleaned and new external lights. Internally, apart from removing the pulpit and deacons' seat, nothing has been touched, but a recent Llanelli Star report states that the Council are considering removing the ground-floor pews for greater flexibility (information of 27/7/1998 from Mr Gareth Watts).
The chapel was built 1909 in Romanesque style to the design of William Griffiths of Llanelli. Refurbished in 1991. Pulpit & deacons' seat removed; possibility that pews also were to be removed.
As at 1992, chapel plans held in office of W Griffiths Son & Lewis, Llanelli (information from Cadw list description of 12/03/1992). - Refurbished: 1991 Source:Cadw
- Built: 1909 Source:Cadw (plaque)
- Built: 1909 Source:Orbach, Julian
- Built: 1909 Source:Watts, Gareth
- Built: 1909 Source:Jones, Anthony
- Closed: 1992 Source:Watts, Gareth
- Date Of Chapel: 1909 Source:
- Architect: 1909 William Griffiths, Llanelli
- Architect: 1909 William Griffiths, Llanelli
- Other: 27/07/1998 Civic hall and community centre (Site visit - Gareth Watts)
- Welsh: 27/07/1998 (Site visit - Gareth Watts)
- Materials
- Monument Type: CHAPEL
- Form: Building
- Style: Romanesque
- Gallery: On three sides
- Plan: Gable Entry
Key Details of this Chapel
Key Dates of this Chapel
Key People in this Chapel History
Changes of Status its History
The Languages of the Chapel during its History
Key Characteristics of this Chapel
Images from Coflein
Map
- Grid Reference: SN51430055
- Address: GLENALLA ROAD, ALBAN ROAD, LLANELLILLANELLI
2 thoughts on “GLENALLA CHAPEL (CALVINISTIC METHODIST), GLENALLA RD./ALBAN RD., LLANELLI (COMMUNITY CENTRE)”
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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