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Bethlehem Unitarian
Church
Turnpike, Newchurch
The Unitarian cause
in Rossendale started when the Methodist Conference at Leeds in 1806
expelled the Rev Joseph Cooke from his ministry, which was based in
Rochdale and extended north as far as Newchurch. A considerable
number of the Rochdale congregation were dissatisfied with this
decision and left the Wesleyans to built their own church, inviting
Mr Cooke to be the minister. At the same time, the Newchurch
congregation, lead by local preacher John Ashworth, asked Mr Cooke
to preach to them and started a second congregation for the new
movement. The Newchurch group held regular services in local rooms,
with John Ashworth leading them and they interchanged their
preachers with those from Rochdale and Padiham. Soon the rooms
became to small for them and though they had little money the
leaders decided to build a chapel, which was opened on the first
Sunday in January 1809. The movement at Newchurch was lead by
"Parson Ashworth" as he was called, until 1852 when he died at the
age of seventy-two. As the "Cause" continued to flourish it was felt
necessary to build a larger chapel and this was opened on Good
Friday 1865 on ground at the side of the old chapel. In 1875 a new
school was built on the site of the old chapel.
The second chapel
continued to be used for over one hundred and twenty years until the
cost of it's upkeep and repair became to great, and services were
moved into the Sunday School in 1985 and the
Chapel was eventually demolished in April 1987. The Sunday School
was used for services until 2004, when, with attendances falling
into single figures it was decided to finally close the doors.
Church registers
Baptisms
1807 - 1994 (indexed transcript at Rawtenstall Library) |
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