John Wesley recorded eighteen visits to Marlborough between 1739 to 1747 and a further visit in 1784 but he does not mention preaching in the town.
Wesleyan Methodists
George and Elizabeth Pocock, and others, purchased a plot of land in Oxford Street in 1811 and built a chapel which was licensed as a preaching house. Pocock (1774-1843) owned and taught at the Prospect Place Academy, Bristol. He was a Wesleyan Local Preacher on the Bristol Circuit Plan and, with John Pryer (1790-1859), also a Wesleyan Local preacher founded the Tent Methodists. The 1851 Religious Census records that 225 people worshipped in the morning, 50 in the afternoon and 125 in the evening. With the growing numbers attending worship the chapel was extended in 1872. By 1900 the chapel was in need of extensive restoration or replacement. Following discussions with Rev. John Hornabrook, the Secretary of the Connexional Chapel Committee, in 1903 a fund raising scheme was launched and by 1909 it was decided to build a new suite of premises. On Wednesday 9 February 1910 the foundation stones for the replacement church to seat 330 people were laid. On Easter Monday, 28 March 1910, the foundation stones for the school hall to be known as Wesley Hall were laid. The New Road Methodist church and Wesley Hall in Oxford Street were opened on Wednesday 6 July 1910. The church was built on land adjacent to the former church which had been sold to the Freemasons.
In 1979 the Methodist Minister took on the extra responsibility of being the minister of the Marlborough United Reformed Church. In 1984 the United Reformed Church closed and on 21 October a United Methodist/URC church was formed, meeting in the New Road Methodist Church, which was renamed Christchurch.
Tent Methodists
The Tent Methodists were a dynamic evangelical movement, which flourished between 1814 and 1832. On 24 April 1814 a tent made by George Pocock capable of holding 500 people was erected in a village close to Bristol. As the movement gained momentum, Marlborough and the surrounding area became an important centre for the Tent Methodists. The tent was erected in 1817 in Marlborough. On 12 June 1818 a tent was pitched in a field on the outskirts of Marlborough for a month long series of meetings and services. In 1821 John Gosling, a Marlborough banker, provided premises in Marlborough for the movement. On 5 January 1821 the Tent Methodists opened their chapel in Marlborough, and this lasted until late in 1828.
Primitive Methodists
The 1851 Religious Census dates the Ebenezer building as being built in 1823 with seating for 160 people. It was built by the General Baptist denomination (Arminian Baptists). In the 1820s a number of Primitive Methodists met in the cottage of the Awdry family in Herd Street. The first minister was the Rev. James Hurd (1809-1892) who in 1832 and 1833 was a minister in the Shefford Circuit and missioned in Marlborough. In 1838 Rev. William Bell (1814-1891) was appointed to the Shefford Circuit and in 1839 the Rev. Henry Higginson (1805-1871) joined the Shefford circuit and they continued the mission work in Marlborough. In 1840 the Mission became a separate circuit with William Bell as the minister. In 1841 the Primitive Methodists bought the General Baptist chapel in Herd Street and also built a house next to it for the minister. In 1843 the Sunday school was started with Mr W. Dance of the Town Mill as the Superintendent. In 1851 the attendance was 90 in the morning, 40 in the afternoon and 90 in the evening. In 1885 plans were drawn up for a larger church to be built in the High Street but the Connexional officers would not allow the scheme to proceed. Soon after the scheme was stopped, the Society began to decline. When in 1892 the Rev. Henry J. Pring (1833-1895) moved from Marlborough to the Pewsey circuit, he was not replaced. In May 1920 the Primitive Methodist and Wesleyan societies amalgamated and met in the Wesleyan Church. The Primitive Methodist Church was sold.
Entry written by: DHR
Category: Place
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