Building record 551/0/7 - Moravian Chapel and No. 12 Parsons Street

Moravian church in Parsons Street, Woodford Hale, originally built in 1798-9 was altered internally and reorientated in 1828, and further altered and and the entrances removed to the north-west end in 1875 and a Sunday School was added. A new chapel was built on the site of the Sunday School in 1906 by AE Allen of Banbury. The original chapel has brick walls on a stone plinth and a slate roof. It incorporates a minister's house of two stories at the south-east end. Adjacent burial ground. The chapel and manse are designated Grade II.

{1} A Moravian chapel and manse, built 1799, altered in the early and late C19 with an additional chapel added to the north-west in 1906 by A.E. Allen of Banbury.
MATERIALS
The chapel and manse are built of red and occasional purple brick, generally laid in Flemish bond, on an ironstone plinth. The shallow gable roof has a slate covering and there is a ridge stack at the southeast end. The 1906 chapel is of red brick with moulded brick and buff stone dressings and has a tiled covering to the roof.
PLAN
The three-bay, C18 chapel and two-storey, two-bay manse are arranged in a rectangular plan. The 1906 chapel is set at a right angle adjoining the north-west elevation of the C18 phase.
EXTERIOR
The south-west elevation of the C18 chapel has three, large, late-C19 windows under shallow, segmented brick heads - there are corresponding windows on the chapel's north-east elevation. The windows are multi-paned with thin, metal glazing bars, inset with a border of red and green coloured glass. A late-C20 flat roofed, single-storey addition is attached to the north-west bay, partially blocking the chapel window in this position. Adjoining to the south-east is the manse. The doorway has a simple rectangular fanlight beneath a straight head. The windows all have shallow, arched heads. To the right of the door are ten-over-ten sash windows without horns at the ground and first floors, which probably date to the late-C18 or early C19. At the first floor, above the doorway, is a C20 casement window. At the north-east elevation, on the Parsons Street frontage, the gable end of the late-C18, two-storey kitchen range has an Edwardian sash window at first floor and an oculus at the apex of the gable. Adjoining to the north-west is a two-storey, late-C19 addition, parallel to the road, with a slatecovered gabled roof and end stack. The angular, single-storey vestibule to the 1906 chapel is adjacent to the north-west. The south-east elevation of the manse has a ten-over-ten sash window of the early-C19 and late-C19 sash and casement windows. The early-C20 chapel has windows with squared, leaded lights and decorative stained glass at the heads. The principal elevation lies at the north-east frontage with Parsons Street and comprises a gable to the west and a staged turret with shouldered buttresses to the east. At the base of the turret is a pointed-arched entrance with a timber door decorated with metal straps. At the first floor is a pair of pointed-arch lancets with stone surrounds. The third stage of the turret houses the belfry and is polygonal with a louvred, single pointed-arch opening to each side and dentilled cornices to the eaves. The gable has a large window with three lights, stone transoms and quatrefoil tracery and a stone surround. A band of terracotta tiles cuts across the lower third of the window. The north-west elevation has a side aisle, supported by buttresses, beneath a pent roof. There are single and three-light windows with stone surrounds. To the rear is a single storey, flat-roofed vestry which obscures the lower part of the rear elevation. Above, are two lancet windows and a central roundel with stained glass depicting the Lamb of God, all with stone surrounds. The south-east elevation abuts the old chapel. Some of the windows in the side aisle at the rear are C20 replacements.
INTERIOR
The C18 chapel retains the late-C19 platform for the pulpit and wall panelling. Above the platform is a roundel on the wall which depicts the Lamb of God (the Moravian symbol) which probably dates from the late-C19. The early-C19 gallery lies at the west end, supported on slender columns with mouldings to the capitals and bases. The timber balustrade of the gallery is faced with rectangular panels and has a carved handrail. Beneath the gallery is a two-panel door, probably of the late-C18 or early-C19, and an enclosed stair which leads to the gallery above. A late-C18, two-panel door leads from the gallery space into the tower of the 1906 chapel, although this is unlikely to be in situ. The pulpit and pews have been removed, and the floor covering is of the late C20. The manse retains many fixtures and fittings of the C19, including the stairs, an early-C19 hob grate, window shutters, cupboards, tiled floor coverings, doors, door furniture and joinery. One door has a 'L' hinge. The roof structure comprises principle rafter trusses with a ridge piece and probably dates to the late-C19. The early-C20 fixtures and fittings of the 1906 chapel remain including the panelled porch, pews and organ. The multi-coloured stained glass has gentle foliate designs in Art Nouveau style. The mock hammer-beam roof rests on carved stone corbels.
SUBSIDIARY FEATURES
The earliest Sunday School remains to the south of the manse, now in use as a shed. It is a brick and weatherboard structure with a slate-covered roof, an eight-light casement window and additional partly-glazed, lean-to.
HISTORY
The Moravian church made considerable headway into Northamptonshire from 1744, served by itinerant preachers from Northampton and Bedford who visited Woodford Halse and nearby Eydon to conduct open air services. In 1787, William Hunt, a farmer of Woodford Halse, began to preach himself, and a house was licensed for such purposes in the village. As the number of followers increased, Woodford became the principal meeting place in the area and was finally recognised as a congregation of the Moravian Church on 25th September 1796. In 1798 the building of the chapel and the adjoining manse (now known as no.12 Parsons Street) started, with the foundation stone being laid on 28th June. The chapel was formally opened on 18th April 1799. Internal re-ordering of 1828 relocated the pulpit from the north end to the east and a new gallery was erected at the west end. More significant remodelling occurred in 1875, when the two entrances on the south elevation were replaced with large windows to light the chapel and a porch was built on the west end. A detached Sunday school was built near to the west end of the church, opening on Christmas Day 1875. In 1906, the growing congregation necessitated the construction of a new chapel on the site of the Sunday school of 1875. Built at a cost of £1400, and designed in Gothic style by Mr A.E Allen from Banbury, the chapel is aligned approximately north-south and has the main front entrance on Parsons Street. The old chapel was used as a Sunday school at this time. In the late-C20, single-storey additions were constructed to the south of the old chapel. By the 1980s, the congregation was declining in numbers and in 1999, the manse was sold off. The manse
had a connecting door into the chapel which may have been blocked by this time. Many of the Northampton Moravian churches closed in the early-C21 and in September 2009, the last service was held at Woodford Halse.
SOURCES
Anon., The Northampton Group of Moravian Chapels and Preaching Houses (1886)
Stell, Christopher. Non-conformist chapels in East England (2002)
REASONS FOR DESIGNATION
The late C18 and C19 Moravian chapel and manse at Woodford Halse is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons.
* Architectural interest: The earlier chapel and manse retain most of the external fabric of 1799. The 1906 addition is robust and competently detailed with a broad palette of materials in the Gothic style which contrasts well with the simplicity of the C18 phase.
* Intactness: The C18 chapel was re-ordered in the early and late C19, but this has not unduly affected the architectural quality of the whole. The manse is little altered, and the early C20 chapel has an intact exterior and interior.
* Interiors: The manse has a largely intact plan-form of the late C18 and retains contemporary features including the stairs and a hob-grate. The C18 chapel has an early C19 gallery. The 1906 chapel has a distinctive roof structure and stained glass with Art Nouveau motifs.
* Historic interest: The foundation of this chapel and manse, and their construction, are relatively well documented which adds to their interest.

{3} Phased plan of chapel showing two principal phases of 1799 and 1906. Report records interior details of the chapels.

{4} Photo of south-west wall;

{5} Further building recording of the 1906 chapel prior to change of use to dwelling.

{6} The Moravian Church, also known as the United Brethren, was established in 1457 in Bohemia and is so named after the Moravian refugees who settled on lands in Saxony owned by Count Zinzendorf in the early 18th century. It became a mission church after 1727, working principally in North America, but established an English church in the 1740s when a chapel was constructed off Fetter Lane in London. A number of Moravian settlements were established elsewhere in the country, the first in Fulneck in Pudsey from 1744 and a smaller settlement in Bedford from 1745. The Moravian church made considerable headway into Northamptonshire from 1744, served by itinerant preachers from Northampton and Bedford who visited Woodford Halse and nearby Eydon to conduct open air services.

In 1787, William Hunt, a farmer of Woodford Halse, began to preach himself, and a house was licensed for such purposes in the village. As the number of followers increased, Woodford became the principal meeting place in the area and was finally recognised as a congregation of the Moravian Church on 25 September 1796. In 1798 the building of the chapel and the adjoining manse (now known as no.12 Parsons Street) started, with the foundation stone being laid on 28 June. Detailed accounts, probably by the Congregation Steward, Henry Sharp, reveal that most of the bricks were made on the site and that the construction was undertaken largely by members of the church, who contributed to the cost of the building and raised funds locally. The wages of both the labourers and carpenters were supplemented by beer, ale and 'suppers', the latter organised by Henry Sharp. The organ was donated by the Chelsea congregation and arrived in the wagon of Mr Sharp amid considerable expectation from the community.

The chapel was formally opened on 18 April 1799. A drawing accompanying the deeds may show the earliest configuration of the ensemble comprising the conjoined manse to the south-east and chapel to the north-west in a rectangular plan. The principal elevation faces south-west where two entrances flank the large, central, chapel window. To the east, the drawing also shows the manse as having two windows (probably the two, ten-over-ten sash windows which are still in-situ) and a kitchen and coalhouse projecting to the north towards Parsons Street. At the north-west boundary of the plot is an 'L' shaped stable block and there are yards in between that and the kitchen. The Boys' school, which is extant, lies in open space to the south of the manse. Further south is the burial ground. A small building to the west appears to read 'dead house'. A sketch of 1860, from the burial ground, shows the south elevation with the same arrangement.

Internal re-ordering of 1828 relocated the pulpit from the north end to the east and a new gallery was erected at the west end. More significant remodelling occurred In 1875, when the two entrances on the south elevation were replaced with large windows to light the chapel and a porch was built on the west end. A detached Sunday school was built near to the west end of the church, opening on Christmas Day 1875, and a small bellcote was added to the west end of the chapel roof. A sketch of 1886 from the burial ground, by an unknown artist, clearly shows this arrangement. A two-storey addition to the kitchen range probably dates to this late-19th century remodelling. Internally, the pulpit was raised onto a platform.

In 1906, the growing congregation necessitated the construction of a new chapel on the site of the Sunday school of 1875. Built at a cost of £1400, and designed in Gothic style by Mr AE Allen from Banbury, the chapel is aligned approximately east-west and has the main front entrance on Parsons Street. An additional single-storey vestibule was added to the street frontage to provide access to both the new and old chapel, the latter used as a Sunday school at this time. To the west, a single-storey element housed the vestry. In the late 20th century, single-storey additions were constructed to the south of the old chapel. By the 1980s, the congregation was declining in numbers and in 1999 the manse was sold off. The manse had a connecting door into the chapel which may have been blocked by this time. Many of the Northampton Moravian churches closed in the early 21st century and in September 2009 the last service was held at Woodford Halse.

The single-phase, three-bay, 18th century chapel and two-storey, two-bay manse are built of red and occasional purple brick, generally laid in Flemish bond, on an ironstone plinth. The shallow gable roof has a slate covering and there is a ridge stack at the south-east end. The south-west elevation has three, large, late 19th century windows to the chapel under shallow, segmented brick heads. There are corresponding windows on the chapel's north-east elevation. The windows are multi-paned with thin, metal glazing bars, inset with a red and green glass border. A late 20th century flat roofed, single-storey addition is attached to the north-west bay, partially blocking the chapel window in this position. Adjoining to the south-east is the manse. The doorway has a simple rectangular fanlight beneath a straight head. The windows all have shallow, arched heads. To the right of the door are ten-over-ten sash windows without horns at the ground and first floors, which probably date to the late 18th centruy or early 19th century. At the first floor, above the doorway, is a 20th century casement window. At the north-east elevation, on the Parsons Street frontage, the gable end of the late 18th century, two- storey kitchen range has an Edwardian sash window at first floor and an oculus at the apex of the gable. Adjoining to the north-west is a two-storey, late 19th century addition, parallel to the road, with a slate-covered gabled roof and end stack. The angular, single-storey vestibule to the 1906 chapel is adjacent to the north-west. The south-east elevation of the manse has a ten-over-ten sash window of the early 19th century, and late 19th century sash and casement windows.

Internally, the chapel retains the late 19th century platform for the pulpit and wall panelling. Above the platform is a roundel on the wall which depicts the Lamb of God (the Moravian symbol) which probably dates from the late 19th century. The early 19th century gallery lies at the west end, supported on slender columns with mouldings to the capitals and bases. The timber balustrade of the gallery is faced with rectangular panels and has a carved handrail. Beneath the gallery is a two-panel door, probably of the late 18th century or early 19th century, and an enclosed stair which leads to the gallery above. A late 18th century, two-panel door leads from the gallery space into the tower of the 1906 chapel, although this is unlikely to be in situ. The pulpit and pews have been removed, and the floor covering is of the late 20th century.

The manse retains many fixtures and fittings of the 19th century, including the stairs, an early 19th century hob grate, window shutters, cupboards, tiled floor coverings, doors, door furniture and joinery. One door has a 'L' hinge. The roof structure comprises principal rafter trusses with a ridge piece and probably dates to the late 19th century.

The Chapel of 1906:
The early 20th century chapel is set at a right-angle to the earlier building. It is of red brick with moulded brick and buff stone dressings and has a crested, tiled, covering to the roof. Some of the bricks in the lower courses have initials carved into them. The windows have squared, leaded lights with decorative stained glass at the heads. The principal elevation lies at the north-east frontage with Parsons Street and comprises a gable to the west and a staged turret with shouldered buttresses to the east. At the base of the turret is a pointed-arched entrance with a timber door decorated with metal straps. At the first floor is a pair of pointed-arch lancets with stone surrounds. The third stage of the turret houses the belfry and is polygonal with a louvred, single pointed-arch opening to each side and dentilled cornices to the eaves. The gable has a large window with three lights, stone transoms and quatrefoil tracery and a stone surround. A band of terracotta tiles cuts across the lower third of the window. The north-west elevation has a side aisle, supported by buttresses, beneath a pent roof. There are single and three-light windows with stone surrounds. To the rear is a single storey, flat-roofed vestry which obscures the lower part of the rear elevation. Above, are two lancet windows and a central roundel with stained glass depicting the Lamb of God, all with stone surrounds. The south-east elevation abuts the old chapel; some of the windows in the side aisle at the rear are 20th century replacements.

Internally, the early 20th century fixtures and fittings remain including the panelled porch, pews and organ. The multi-coloured stained glass has gentle foliate designs in Art Nouveau style. The mock hammer-beam roof rests on carved stone corbels.

The chapel ceased to be used for worship in 2009

The Moravians were a small, but influential, non-conformist movement of the 18th century whose lasting architectural legacy includes not only chapels, but also schools, domestic housing and other buildings within planned settlements such as Fulneck, Yorkshire; Ockbrook, Derbyshire; and Fairfield, Greater Manchester. Although these large foundations were arranged in accordance with the model settlement of Herrhaag in Wetteravia, established in 1738, smaller settlements were also established. The Moravian church at Bedford, for example, comprised a chapel with the manse, sisters /brethren houses, and schools attached. A number of smaller congregations, including that at Woodford Halse, were focused on the chapel and manse, but the provision of a school was a standard requirement. The liturgical practice of the Moravian church was flexible, but focused on Communion with a strong emphasis on singing and free forms of worship such as the 'lovefeast' where the fellowship would eat together and share news. As with most places of worship, the liturgical practice dictates the internal arrangement and Moravian chapels typically had ramped galleries facing a Communion table where the liturgist sat.

Of the Moravian settlement buildings in England, twenty chapels are designated. These include the chapel at Fulneck (1746-8, Grade I) and those at Ockbrook (1751) and Droylsden (1785), both listed at Grade II*. A number of mid-and later 19th century chapels at smaller settlements such as Leominster (1759, altered 1875) Cleckheaton (1880), Bath (1845) and Shipley (1868) are designated at Grade II. The chapel and manse at Woodford Halse are a relatively early example of this building type and most of the external fabric of 1799 remains. The manse retains sash windows and some fixtures and fittings which are likely to be contemporary with the construction of the building, such as the stairs, hob-grate and some doors. The interior of the early chapel has been re-ordered, but nevertheless, the 1828 arrangement reflecting the Moravian liturgical tradition remains. The gallery is a notable survival of this date. The replacement of the chapel windows in the late 19th century does not affect the architectural quality of the building unduly. The 1906 addition is robust and competently detailed with a broad palette of materials in the Gothic style which contrasts well with the simplicity of the earlier phases. The interior fixtures and fittings are typical rather than special, but the roof structure and stained glass with Art Nouveau motifs enliven the interior and overall this early 20th century addition adds to the interest of the ensemble.

The architecture of the whole group expresses the historic development of the Moravian church at Woodford Halse from the earliest, almost domestic, beginnings to the growing church of the early 20th century. The chapel and manse are a rare example of late 18th century origin which retains much 18th and 19th century historic fabric, fixtures and fittings with the added architectural interest of the1906 addition. The ensemble is of comparable architectural interest to designated examples and should be added to the statutory List at Grade II.

The Moravian chapel and manse at Woodford Halse have special architectural and historic interest.

Anon., The Northampton Group of Moravian Chapels and Preaching Houses (1886)
Stell, Christopher. Non-Conformist Chapels and Meeting Houses in East England (2002)

The late 18th century and 19th century Moravian chapel and manse at Woodford Halse are recommended for designation for the following principal reasons.
* Architectural interest: The earlier chapel and manse retain most of the external fabric of 1799. The 1906 addition is robust and competently detailed with a broad palette of materials in the Gothic style which contrasts well with the simplicity of the 18th century phase.
* Intactness: The 18th century chapel was re-ordered in the early and late 19th century, but this has not unduly affected the architectural quality of the whole. The manse is little altered, and the early 20th century chapel has an intact exterior and interior.
* Interiors: The manse has a largely intact plan-form of the late 18th century and retains contemporary features including the stairs and a hob-grate. The 18th century chapel has an early 19th century gallery. The 1906 chapel has a distinctive roof structure and stained glass with Art Nouveau motifs.
* Historic interest: the foundation of this chapel and manse, and their construction, are relatively well documented which adds to their interest.

<1> Department for Culture, Media and Sport, 2011, Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 Amendment to the List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest, (checked) (Document). SNN107293.

<2> ENGLISH HERITAGE, 2011, English Heritage (Listing) Advice Report: Moravian Chapel and No. 12 Parsons Street, Woodford cum Membris, (unchecked) (Document). SNN107294.

<3> Soden, I. & Walker, C., 2014, Building recording at the Moravian Chapel, Parsons Street, Woodford Halse, Northamptonshire July-August 2014, (checked) (Report). SNN110236.

<4> The Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England, 1986, Nonconformist Chapels and Meeting-Houses: Northamptonshire & Oxfordshire, p. 153 (Report). SNN2902.

<5> Yeates, S, 2018, Historic Building Record on Old Moravian Church, Parsons Street, Woodford Halse, Northamptonshire (Report). SNN111481.

<6> ENGISH HERITAGE, English Heritage Listing File, Designation Adviser, 20th January 2011 (Report). SNN111579.

Record last edited

Feb 5 2025 6:16PM