Memorial Title
Matlock Congregational Church (Lost)
Summary
Can you tell us what happened to this memorial?.
Images
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Click on a thumbnail to see a larger image. Further images may be available on request. |
Locations
| Last known location: Former Matlock United Reformed Church Chesterfield Rd (A632) Matlock Bank Derbyshire |
Nearest postcode: DE4 3DQ NGR: SK 30396 60465 (From online digital mapping.) (Map opens in new window.) |
Location details: The building was formerly the Congregational Church Sunday School and is on the west side of Chesterfield Rd at the junction with Smedley Street East. In 2020 it was occupied by The Lifeworks Hub. The remains of the memorial were last known to have been in the lobby. |
| Previous location: Former Matlock Congregational Church (demolished) Chesterfield Rd (A632) Matlock Bank Derbyshire |
Nearest postcode: DE4 3DQ NGR: SK 30374 60410 (From online digital mapping.) (Map opens in new window.) |
Location details: The church was on the west side of Chesterfield Rd opposite the junction with Turnpike Close. The memorial was in the chancel. |
Type
| Overall type: Window | Overall condition: Lost.
Can you tell us what happened to this memorial?. |
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| Description: A rose window accompanied by a wooden board bearing an inscription and names. No details are known of the design of the window but a contemporary press report stated that it bore an inscription (quoted below). The carved oaken board is reported to have been set into the dado panelling below the window, although its inscription suggests that it may have been elsewhere in the church. It had intricate geometrical designs with diagonal mouldings surrounding panels of various shapes. Towards the head a circle contained a cinquefoil panel containing carved ivy leaves and bearing an inscription in upright capital block lettering (quoted below). Below that at least two arches contained possible quatrefoil panels probably bearing the WW1 names. It is likely that additional panels containing WW2 names were added below. Glossary |
Components:
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Inscription
| Window: |
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| This rose window was given by their returned comrades-in-arms as a tribute to the memory of E. Andrews, S H. Andrews, O. Flint, G. Hall, J. Margerrison, A. Toplis, A. Whittaker, and T. Wilson, who laid down their lives in the Great War 1914-1919. They followed in His train. [Style and line spacing not known. See Comments section below regarding this inscription.] |
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| Board: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| THE ROSE WINDOW IN THE CHANCEL WAS GIVEN BY THEIR RETURNED COMRADES-IN-ARMS AS A TRIBUTE TO THE MEMORY OF [No further details known. See Comments section below regarding this inscription.] |
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Administration
Local authorities:
From WW1: Matlock Parish Council; Matlock Urban District Council; Derbyshire County Council.
From 1974: Matlock Town Council; Derbyshire Dales District Council; Derbyshire County Council.
History and Conservation
25th July, 1920: The memorial was unveiled by Capt Henry Douglas of the Sherwood Foresters, organist at the church.
Unknown date c1950: The WW2 inscription was added.
23rd August, 1969: The church roof was destroyed by fire and the building rendered unuseable. The congregation removed to the adjacent Sunday School building.
Autumn 1969: The church was demolished, the window was lost but part of the board was salvaged and taken to the Sunday School.
October 1972: The Congregational and Prebyterian Churches merged to form the United Reformed Church. The Congregational Sunday School was redesignated as the United Reformed Church.
November, 1990: The URC congregation removed to Trinity Church on Oak Road, but the board was left in the previous building.
1991: The board is believed to have been cut up for scrap.
References
Belper News; 6th August, 1920; p6: a report on the unveiling ceremony of WW1 memorial.
Derbyshire Courier; 31st July 1920; p1: a report on the unveiling ceremony of WW1 memorial.
Comments
Similary the locations of the board and window seem confusing. The press reports are that the window was above the board, so it seems strange that the board refers to the window "in the chancel", which implies that the board was not in the chancel.
Can you add to or correct anything on this page? Let us know.