1844 to 1888 Ordnance Survey Map
Showing location of the Clutton Churches.
St. Augustine of Hippo
Congregational Chapel (Independant)
Methodist Church (Wesleyan)
Zion Chapel (The Chapel Under The Tree)
1844 to 1888 Ordnance Survey Map
Showing location of the Clutton Methodist Chapel.
The Story Of Our Village – Clutton (Published By Clutton WI.)
Congregational Chapel (Independent)
The Old Chapel - November 1983
The Old Chapel (Interior) - November 1983
For March 2009 street view click here
In 1662, the Rev. Matthew Afflat was ejected from Clutton Church for refusing to read the Act of Uniformity, when 2,000 Church of England Clergy were ejected from their livings. The East window of Clutton Chapel is a fine stained glass memorial to him.
Then came the ‘Five Mile Act” which prevented him from preaching within five miles of his church, and so his followers built a chapel at Chelwood, where the window was originally used. He probably continued to hold services as and when he could.
In 1813, the Congregational or Independent Chapel was built and opened. It was attended by a number of well-to-do farmers including one of the Brodribbs. It was endowed by £600 left by Mr. Adams of Stanton Drew. The services were well attended. The records say that in 1851, 150 attended in the morning and 200 in the evening.
This chapel has recently been altered and redecorated in pastel colours, the work being mostly done by the youth of the chapel. They have also removed the old pews and installed chairs in their place.
In 1862, the British School was opened mainly for children of the people who attended the chapel. The foundation stone was laid by W. D. Wills.
Tales are told of how hard the children had to work, and it’s said that at 11 a.m. one of the children would go down to the Railway Hotel, with 3d. for one pint of beer and a piece of bread and cheese for the schoolmaster’s lunch.
Methodist Church (Wesleyan)
For March 2009 street view click here
John Wesley visited Clutton on four occasions, the first being in 1780, when he was 77. He writes in his journal, “I read prayers and preached in Clutton Church, but it was with great difficulty because of my hoarseness, which so increased, that in four and twenty hours I could scarce speak at all. At night I used my never- failing remedy, bruised garlic applied to the soles of my feet. This
cured my hoarseness in six hours, and in one hour it cured my lumbago”.
Two years later he visited Clutton again, and failing to obtain permission to preach in the church, stood on a tombstone in the churchyard and preached a sermon.
Afterwards he was offered hospitality by Tobias Blacker (born 1718) a forbear of Charles Blacker.
There was a properly organised Society in the village in 1771. The old ‘preaching room’ was at the top of Gastons. In later years this was Mr. Partington’s shop. A few years ago this was pulled down with the other cottages there, and now a pair of modern semi-detached houses have taken their place.
In 1779 the membership had reached 106, and a piece of land was purchased from Mr. Leman in 1809 and the Wesleyan Chapel was built. It was enlarged in 1837, and in 1897 the manse was built on land given by Lord Warwick.
The Methodist Union became an established fact in 1932, when the Wesleyans, Primitive Methodists and United Methodists joined together. In 1960 the 150th anniversary of the present building was celebrated, when it was completely redecorated throughout.
The two cottages close to the Methodist Church were given to the Methodists by Mr. Green, the owner of the Brewery. The income from them helped towards the upkeep of the building. In 1961, one of these cottages was demolished for the road improvement scheme.
Zion Chapel (The Chapel Under The Tree)
For July 2019 street view click here
The Chapel under the Tree as it was always called, has now disappeared and in its place stands a bungalow.
It was built in 1853 and was used by the United Methodist Free Churches. It closed in 1933 and was taken over by the scouts under Mr. C. Mansfield.
Postcard - Lena Church collection
Methodist Church (Clutton Hill)
For March 2009 street view click here
Source (Extracts) - A History of the Methodist Society on Clutton Hill by Arthur Heal - Published by the Clutton History Group.
It is not possible to recognise the Methodist chapel as a conventional religious building for it is obvious that the structure was not designed for sacred use. Consisting of two floors, the lower one was divided by a central wall, forming two apartments but only one window; access to each being through separate doors from the road on the north side. The upper storey was approached over a cobbled path, and a flight of stone steps outside the south wall, giving entrance to a room about 25 feet long and 12 feet wide .
Overlooking the steps were three windows, which appear to have been added to the original building at a later date. Thus, although situated between, and forming a part of, a block of dwelling houses, it did not appear to have been intended for any domestic use, indeed tradition, which someone has described as unproved history, says it was at one time used as a malt house, a fact not inconsistent with the outside steps.
Francis Beacham was the owner of the whole of the property in the block, and the room used as a chapel was mentioned in an indenture between him and two other men, Richard Lewis and Jonas Cook, dated March 25th, 1853.
It is not possible to give a date when a society first existed, but a circuit plan dated August, 1856 records that Clutton Hill was one of the twenty-four constituting the Midsomer Norton circuit at that time.
In accordance with early Methodist practice, the gentlemen sat on one side of the room. Thus the ladies on the other side had to depend on such light as found its way past the broad forms of the men.
Like most early services the hymns were unaccompanied by any music, the worshippers taking it more or less in turn to lead the singing. Eventually a harmonium was obtained, but for some unfortunate reason it did not remain in use for very long.
Mr. Walter Harvey then co-operated with William Perry and several others in an effort to obtain an organ, and when the following year, one was purchased for £14 it was a red-letter day for the society. It made a joyful melody for 11 years.
The circumstances of the society were becoming perplexing, it was impossible to muster more than three or four people for the intermittent services, and a special leaders meeting on September 9th regretfully decided that these could only be held monthly. Thus 1960 began with dark shadows looming over the society. The
problem was not lack of money, but lack of members.
The inevitable cessation of all activity drew near and on April 24th 1960, what proved to be the last service was conducted by Mr. W. J. Carter of Clutton.