Herefordshire Through Time
Herefordshire Through Time
Historic Environment Record reference no. 35757, Ordnance Survey grid reference: SO 3952 5491
The site of Stockmoor Chapel is in the corner of a field about 1¼ miles west of the village of Dilwyn, not far from the hamlet of Luntley. This chapel is shown on the 1888 1st edition OS map, but not on the 1984 edition.
The chapel was built by the Primitive Methodists in 1864; it originally cost £146 and was designed to seat 120. The land acquired for the site cost £4 and measured 101 square yards.
As is typical for a chapel in such an isolated position the membership was never very large:
| 1884 | 7 members |
| 1906 | 20 members |
| 1912 | 13 members |
| 1916 | 10 members |
| 1931 | 10 members |
| 1944 | 8 members |
By 1882 there was a Sunday service at 2.30pm but no Sunday evening or weeknight service. In 1951 the building was in need of renovation for the second time but attendance had dropped quite low. Things did not improve; by 1954 the chapel was averaging only three people at services, and it had not been possible to carry out the repairs. Services ceased soon after.
The property of the chapel was dispersed to local chapels such as Kingsland and Weobley, and in 1963 the building was sold for £20. Unfortunately it has since been demolished.
(Information taken from Fred Bluck, Methodism in the Marches)
HER no. 35758, OS grid ref: SO 4195 5478
Dilwyn Primitive Methodist Chapel was built in 1838, by trustees. In the same year the minutes for the Weobley Branch stated that they only had one chapel in the area, with the rest of the meetings being held in private houses. The Quarterly Meeting decided "That a letter be sent to Birmingham to ascertain the truth respecting Dilwyn Chapel, whether it belongs to this connexion or not".
The early congregation of Dilwyn Chapel was made up of the very poor and employment was scarce. In 1839 the numbers had fallen considerably and it was noted "this year we have had to contend with the powers of darkness to a high degree".
There are details of opposition to the travelling preachers who at one time removed a Richard Fox from his office of class leader as he had neglected his class for seven or eight weeks. This caused a quarrel and some 38 members were lost because of it.
The minutes for the meeting of the Leominster and Weobley Circuit on 2nd March 1857 show that it was decided that there was need for a new chapel at Dilwyn.
The new chapel was built in 1857 at a cost of £90 and with seating for 180. The following year the average attendance was 150 on Sundays and 80 on weekdays. The chapel did not have a Sunday School.
In 1860 there was more trouble among the members and James Jones of Dilwyn was suspended from preaching as he had been convicted of joining a card party and of playing at cards.
In 1884 and 1890 letters were written from the Quarterly Branch Meeting asking for the establishment of a Sunday School.
The membership of Dilwyn Chapel varied considerably during the 19th century:
| 1838 | 15 members |
| 1849 | 37 members |
| 1852 | 36 members |
| 1884 | 15 members |
By 1882 there were two services on a Sunday, at 2.30pm and 6pm, and up until 1929 this remained the same.
The loss of members in the 1960s led to suggestions that Dilwyn Chapel should amalgamate with the local Baptists. By 1970 the attendance had dwindled further and the Trustees' meeting of 29th June shows that the Synod had given permission to close Dilwyn and to sell off the contents.
The items put up for sale included the pews, harmonium, piano, carpet, pulpit furnishings, an electric fire and an oil stove. From the Dilwyn Trust Account we know that the pews were sold for amounts between 7-10 shillings. The rest of the furniture was sold for £10 and the building itself was sold to a Mr. Havard for £100.
After its closure the chapel was used as a farm grain store, and unfortunately a few years later there was a fire that destroyed the interior. All that remained in the 1980s were three walls and the front steps.
HER no. 31446, OS grid ref: SO 5373 5753
A Methodist Chapel marked on the 1889 and 1964 OS maps. It is situated adjacent to the A44 Leominster to Bromyard road. It is brick built with a slate roof and ornamental ridge tiles. The brickwork of the chapel is ornate in that it is in colours of red, yellow and blue/black, and these colours have been used to create patterns around the windows and the four wall buttresses on each side of the structure.
The front has a large porch with a slate roof, and above the porch is a large circular window with some coloured glass. On each side of the porch are narrow lancet windows. The gable end has decorative barge boards but there is no inscription on the outside of the chapel.
The conveyance of land for the building of Steens Bridge chapel is dated as 4th May 1881, and the chapel received its certificate of worship on the 13th September 1881 as a Wesleyan Methodist Chapel. The land had been given by a Mr. G. Lloyd who was a local preacher and member of the Methodist Society.
There are no figures for membership of this chapel before 1944, when there were four members, and in 1960 the number was the same. In 1929 there was a Sunday evening service and by 1931, as well as the evening service, there was also a Thursday evening meeting once a month.
In 1930 the Leominster Free Church Magazine reported that the chapel had re-opened (this may have been after renovations) and that the congregations were encouraging.
In October 1967 the chapel was closed and the building later sold for £250. The chapel has remained in private ownership since and has now been converted into a dwelling.
HER no. 36559, OS grid ref. SO 3151 4163
A chapel situated in the centre of Dorstone village, on a road called Chapel Lane.
The chapel is of red brick with yellow stone dressings around the edges. The door is a pointed arch shape in the middle at the front and has a matching pointed arched window on either side. The datestone above the door reads "Bethesda Primitive Methodist Chapel 1864".
On the 1844 tithe map the building is marked as cottages, but on the First Edition OS map of 1891 it is marked as a Primitive Methodist Chapel. The chapel is still there today.
[Original author: Miranda Greene, 2003]