From the Merthyr Express 80 years ago today…..
Tag: Hope Chapel
Merthyr’s Chapels: Market Square Chapel
Market Square English Congregational Chapel
By the 1830’s the population of Merthyr was expanding rapidly, so there was need of a place of worship for the English speaking members of the Independent chapels. A group of Scotsmen began meeting in a small room in the Old Foundry in Lower High Street.
On 30 December 1838 a public meeting was held and it was decided to establish an English Independent Church. The foundation stone was laid on 11 June 1840 and the chapel was completed and opened for worship on 4 May 1841. Market Square’s first minister was Rev Edward Griffiths. Rev Griffiths son, Samuel went on to become Prime Minister of Queensland.
Over the years many improvements were made to the chapel including the installation of an impressive organ costing £120 in 1850, and the building of a schoolroom and new vestries in 1877 costing £400.
In 1893, the Christian Endeavour Society which was very active at Market Square Chapel started to hold open air meetings at Caedraw on Sundays, and later Caedraw Board School was obtained for services.At the beginning of Rev S R Jenkins’ pastorate in 1898, the chapel engaged an evangelist, Miss Ward, for a period of twelve months, and promised to build a Mission Hall. For various reasons the building of the Mission Hall was delayed, but it was finally completed and opened on 3 November 1904. The Caedraw Mission became a great success, and a full time missioner was installed there at a fixed salary. It remained an integral part of Market Square until it was demolished in 1961 to make way for the new road being built.
Caedraw Mission Hall in the background of this photo. Courtesy of the Alan George Archive
In 1912, Alderman J M Berry, who was a leading deacon of the chapel was elected Mayor of the Borough of Merthyr Tydfil, and his three sons would go on to be prominent citizens and all three would be honoured with peerages.
Henry Seymour Berry (1877-1928) acquired substantial holdings in steel, coal, transport, printing, and shipping and was made a Freeman of the Borough in 1923 and became Baron Buckland of Bwlch in 1926. William Ewart Berry (1879-1953) and James Gomer Berry (1883-1968) together built a vast empire of magazines, regional and national newspapers, including the Financial Times, The Daily Telegraph, and the Sunday Times. Gomer became Baron Kemsley in 1936 and Viscount Kemsley in 1944. He was made a Freeman of the Borough in 1955. William was made Baron Camrose in 1929 and a Viscount in 1941.
In 1938 Market Square Chapel celebrated its centenary; one of the appreciative gifts to the chapel was the installation of a new pipe organ. Lord Kemsley and Lord Camrose had shared their parent’s affection for the church of their boyhood days and made a gift of the organ in memory of their parents.
In 1961 it was announced that the chapel was to be demolished as part of the refurbishment of the town centre, and after many discussions, in 1966 it was decided to build a new chapel. The old chapel was finally demolished in 1969 and the foundations for the new chapel were laid the same year. The new chapel which is now situated in Salmon Street officially opened in 1971. The new chapel was designed specifically so that it could house the pipe organ donated by the Berry family, so the organ was put into storage until the new chapel was built and it could be installed.
In 1972, Market Square became a United Reformed Church, and in 1974 united with Hope Chapel and Trinity Chapel, Merthyr Vale. In 2008, it became apparent that the cost of running both Market Square and Hope Chapels was too high so that it was decided that one of the buildings should be closed. A vote was held amongst the members of the congregation, and it was decided that Market Square should be kept open, and it is one of the few chapels still holding services.
Merthyr’s Chapels: Bethel Chapel, Georgetown
The next chapel we are going to look at is one of Merthyr’s oldest and most important chapels – Bethel English Baptist Chapel in Georgetown.
In the early 1800’s some members of the congregation at Zion Chapel, Twynyrodyn wanted to hold services in English to cater for the increasing number of English speaking members of the chapel, so in 1806 a group of worshippers led by William and Martha Matthews and William Baldwin started meeting in a blacksmith’s shop on Tramroadside just behind the present day Hope Chapel.
It was soon found that this location was not ideal due to the noise from the blacksmith, and the group moved to a room above two cottages in Morgan Jones Court, which was situated close to where the present Tesco Store has been built. An application was made on 19 November 1806 for the room to be formally recognised as a place of worship to be called Providence Chapel. This was granted on 1 January 1807, and Rev Daniel Davies was inducted as the first minister of the new place of worship.
Rev Davies, originally from Pembrokeshire, was a very able man and an accomplished preacher, despite the fact that he was blind. At first he was very popular, even preaching at the Calvinistic Methodist Chapel at Pontmorlais, which caused a stir amongst the Calvinistic Methodist Association and also amongst the English Baptists congregation, but ultimately he fell into a less than salubrious lifestyle which angered the church, and he retired in 1812.
By 1813 the congregation had grown to such an extent that it became obvious that a larger place of worship was required. At this time, a chapel became available in Georgetown. It had been built in 1807 by the General Baptists and was called Bethel, but the congregation had quickly dwindled, so the worshippers from Providence Chapel bought the building and grave yard for £200. Following necessary repairs to the building, the new chapel opened in April 1813.
The congregation flourished so by 1826 the chapel had to be rebuilt at a cost of £495 to double the size of the seating. By 1841 the congregation had again grown so it was decided that a new chapel should be built in the town centre. The congregation left Bethel and moved to the new High Street Chapel in June 1841.
A short time after this, members of Ebenezer Chapel in Plymouth Street took over the empty chapel to cater for the members of Ebenezer from that part of the town, thus Bethel became a Welsh Baptist Chapel.
Within twenty years the congregation had dwindled whilst the congregation at the nearby Ainon Chapel grew, so in 1862 the congregations exchanged chapels. By 1893 however, the fortunes of both chapels had reversed so the congregations returned to their original places of worship.
As with most of the chapels in Merthyr, the congregation dwindled during the 1960s, and the chapel closed in the 1970s. Many schemes were mooted to use the building, but none came to fruition, and Bethel sank into dereliction and was eventually demolished in 1983.
One of the most striking features of the chapel was its interior with the seats angled towards the pulpit. This was unique in the Merthyr area. Below are two excellent photographs of the interior of Bethel Chapel courtesy of Mike Donovan.
Christmas 1883
The article transcribed below appeared in the Merthyr Express 135 years ago today (29 December 1883), and gives details of how Christmas was celebrated in Merthyr all those years ago. It’s remarkable how so much has changed, yet the drunken revelling has not!!!!
CHRISTMASTIDE AT MERTHYR
There was nothing novel in the manner of spending Christmas at Merthyr. For years it has been the practice of a number of young men and women to usher in Christmas by perambulating the streets the livelong night, shouting and screaming and indulging in various kinds of horseplay to their own amusement and the disgust of steady-going citizens trying to get their measure of rest after a hard day’s work. This year was no exception to the disagreeable instinct which seems to have forced the custom upon us. One or two singing parties were out and did their best to relieve the monotony of the other voices by singing some appropriate pieces, but it was a rollicking time for the youngsters who verily did not go home till morning when daylight was about to appear.
The morning was foggy, but it cleared rapidly after sunrise, and such a beautiful, bright, mild spring day has not been experienced on the 25th December for many years. It was most unseasonably fine, and people went abroad in thousands. The Taff Vale Company ran their ordinary service, and the Great Western ran special trains between Merthyr and Hirwain (sic) and vice versa. These trains were crowded with passengers. The interchange of outward and inward traffic was enormous and appeared to be pretty evenly balanced. At a very early hour the High-street was in a state of congestion. The puddle of the roads had no perceptible influence upon the incessant motion of the living stream, and as Christmas day does not rank as a Sunday in the Closing Bill, it was an ordinary day for public houses, which had a tremendous run of business. There was a good deal of drunkenness apparent in the evening, but no rowdyism. The charges at the police station for drunken and disorderly conduct were not numerous.
The usual Christmas dinner to the poor was distributed at St. David’s schoolrooms to over two thousand persons, the expenses of which were defrayed by the subscriptions of the townspeople. The Rector, the High Constable, and a numerous staff of volunteer carvers and distributors were engaged upon this duty for over two hours, well earning their own Christmas dinners, and, as heretofore, they had Mr. T. B. Meredith as their right hand man. Mr. J. Howfield, confectioner, undertook the cooking, which was all that could be desired.
The deaf and dumb people of the Merthyr branch of the Glamorganshire Mission to the Deaf and Dumb were entertained by Mr. and Mrs. Rhys Davies at their residence at Courtland Terrace. A large number of mutes came from Merthyr, Dowlais, Aberdare, Tredegar, Rhymney, Cardiff, and Swansea. After dinner, the mutes went up the hill to see one of their number suffering from an injured foot at his house, and one of them took a hat and made a collection for the poor man. After that an adjournment was made to Mr. Davies’s house to tea, which finished, their pastor, the Rev. E. Rowlands, addressed them on the “Love of God”, and after a cordial vote of thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Davies for their hospitality, the mutes left, having spent a most enjoyable Christmas.
At the Workhouse and Aberdare School too, the usual sumptuous fare of roast beef and plum pudding was served to the inmates and greatly enjoyed, whilst the additional luxuries of tobacco to the old men and snuff to the old women, as well as tea and coffee, were highly acceptable and appreciated.
Four performances of “The Haymakers” were given by the Bethesda Choir at the Temperance Hall on Christmas and Boxing Days. The powerful attraction of Uncle Tom’s Cabin influenced the attendance here prejudicially, nevertheless, the receipts for the whole series of performances amounted to a considerable sum, and the choir will more than clear all expenses. The performances were highly creditable, and received well-merited applause, the stage scenery being particularly effective. A competitive meeting was held at Bethel Chapel on Christmas Day, and at Hope Chapel on the evening following, while entertainments, dancing parties, and other forms of amusements took place all over the neighbourhood. The Volunteer Band paraded the town on Christmas Day, while the Town Band played several selections on the Market Square on Boxing Day. Altogether, the Christmastide just past has been as busy as any like period for many years.
The Cymanfa Ganu
In years gone by, the most important event for the chapels of Merthyr (and indeed all of Wales) was the annual Cymanfa (literally translated as assembly or festival). As well as the Cymanfa Bregethu (preaching festival) there was also, more significantly and more famously the annual Cymanfa Ganu or Cymanfa Gerddorol (singing or music festival).
The first ever Cymanfa Ganu was held in Aberdare in 1873, and was inaugurated by Rev John Roberts (Ieuan Gwyllt) formally of Bethlehem Chapel, Caepantywyll, and the first Cymanfa Ganu was held in Merthyr Tydfil by the Calvinistic Methodists in 1874 at Pontmorlais Chapel.
The Welsh Baptists held their first Cymanfa Ganu in 1886 at Zion Chapel, Twynyrodyn and the Welsh Independents followed two years later holding their first Cymanfa Ganu in 1888 at Zoar Chapel.
Traditionally, the Welsh Baptists held their Cymanfa on Easter Monday, alternating between Zion Chapel, Twynyrodyn and Tabernacle Chapel; the Independents held their Cymanfa on Easter Tuesday at Zoar Chapel (and later at Gellideg Chapel) and the Methodists held their Cymanfa on the first Monday in May at Pontmorlais Chapel until it closed and then at Zoar Chapel until 1984 and afterwards at Hope Chapel.
As well as this, the Dowlais Baptists and Independents held their own separate Cymanfa’s, with the Independents holding theirs on Easter Monday and the Baptists on Easter Tuesday – both Cymanfa’s being held at Bethania Chapel. This continued until the 1960’s when both denominations amalgamated their Cymanfa’s to hold a joint Cymanfa on Easter Tuesday.
The Treharris and district Baptists and Independents also held their own Cymanfa’s – respectively on Easter Monday at Brynhyfyd Chapel and Easter Tuesday at Tabernacle Chapel.
Below are copies of: the programme for the 1911 Cymanfa Ganu held by the Methodist Chapels of Merthyr at Pontmorlais Chapel 106 years ago today; a programme for the Merthyr Independent Cymanfa of 1918; a programme for the Merthyr Baptist Cymanfa of 1937 and a programme for the Dowlais Joint Cymanfa of 1972.
