Listed Building: Tomb of the Revd Andrew Fuller in baptist church burial ground (1051656)

Summary of Building An early-C19 altar tomb. Reasons for Designation Legacy Record – This information may be included in the List Entry Details History The historic core of Kettering centres around St Peter and St Paul church, Market Place to its north-west, and the immediate network of streets around it. Originally a Saxon village and later a market town, Kettering was for much of its history a relatively small linear settlement comprising what are now Gold Street, the High Street, Market Street, and Market Place. This core layout of medieval streets persists today, though the majority of the surviving buildings date from the C19 and early C20. Kettering was at the convergence of several important routes and benefited from this and from the wool industry, but it was the arrival in 1857 of the Midland Railway which enabled larger industries, particularly the boot and shoe making industry, to expand the town significantly beyond its historic core. The wider town is still characterised by numerous former factories and associated terraced housing. The site of Fuller Baptist Church (Grade II-listed, National Heritage List for England entry 1051655) has been developed since at least the C16, and buildings probably existed on this site from the early days of the Saxon settlement. Maps from the 1720s show this area of Gold Street densely occupied, with some buildings extending to the rear on long narrow plots. In 1769, the first Baptist church was erected on this site, in a complex that also comprised school rooms, a burial ground, a house and garden for the minister, and four cottages. This C18 church was enlarged in 1805. The Reverend Andrew Fuller (born 1754), after whom the Church was named, was pastor from 1783 to his death in 1815 and was buried in the adjacent burial ground. He was a noted theologian and missionary and was friends with William Carey, another nonconformist minister with connections to Kettering. He helped Carey found the Baptist Missionary Society. In 1861 the previous church was demolished, and the current church was built. The burial ground of the previous church, including the tomb of Andrew Fuller, was retained. Details MATERIALS: limestone. DESCRIPTION: a classical altar tomb typical of the Regency period, with plinth end pilasters, shaped inscription panels and cornice slab over.

Record last edited

Oct 10 2023 9:28AM