Heritage

Churches, chapels and communities in Wymeswold - heritage of the last 900 years

The churches and chapels of Wymeswold are the village's most important heritage buildings. Four church buildings can still be seen in the village, two of which remain in use for worship. St Mary's church is the oldest, commenced sometime in the 1100s, and a Grade I listed building. It is a heritage site of national importance, because In the 1840s, it was restored inside and out by the famous architect A.W.N. Pugin (who also worked on the Houses of Parliament) and it remains an important example of Gothic revival architecture. Worship has been held continuously on the site for at least 900 years.

The Wesleyan Methodists - today the Methodist Church - constructed two chapels in the 19th century. In 1801, they built the 'old' chapel, later a schoolhouse, which is now a private house. It is sited next to the later, larger chapel of 1845, on adjacent sites in The Stockwell. The old and the new chapels are Grade II listed and the 'old' chapel may be the oldest surviving Methodist building  in the Loughborough area.  Worship continues in the 1845 church.

The fourth surviving church is the former General Baptist Chapel on Wysall Lane, dating to 1782 and again listed Grade II. It  is now a private house, although its burial ground survives around it.

There were other religious groups as well. The Society of Friends or Quakers had a Meeting House in the Stockwell in the later 1600s and early 1700s. Another Methodist congregation, the Primitive Methodists, had a chapel in London Lane. It was sold in the 1890s and became a dairy, it was demolished in 1989 and is now the site of a care home. The Salvation Army may have met in the village in the early 1900s. There were always small numbers of Roman Catholic families, who generally worshipped outside of the village.

Why is this important today? Because the histories of the buildings are the histories of the people who used them, which was most of the people of Wymeswold for much of the last 900 years. Buildings were used for worship; they also held services to welcome new members to the community through baptism; they launched new families in marriages; they provided for the burial and remembrance of the dead; they offered venues to celebrate and commemorate local and national events, from harvest festivals to the death of Queen Elizabeth II. They were - and are - used for social activities, political engagements, and cultural events. Their walls, interiors and contents, tell the story of the village.

These web pages are devoted to the histories of the religious buildings and communities of Wymeswold. The history of the church and chapel heritage is the story of the village. Further, Wymeswold's religious history is rich and varied. It is made even more diverse today with modern faiths and global religions such as Paganism, Sikhism, Hinduism and Islam, as new people come to the village. All of these will be considered on this website.

The following web histories and guides have been prepared with the support of The National Lottery Heritage Fund.