Memorials of the Independent Churches in Northamptonshire / with biographical notices of their pastors, and some account of the puritan ministers who laboured in the county.

by Thomas Coleman

CHAPTER XXVII.

HOME MISSIONARY STATIONS.

1.—KING'S CLIFFE AND NASSINGTON.

In the north-eastern part of the county of Northampton there are two Home Missionary Stations. In the first of these the agent statedly preaches at King's Cliffe and Nassington, having a Chapel at Castor also under his superintendence.

The Church that has been formed at King's Cliffe originated in the efforts of the General Baptists about thirty years back. The Rev. Mr. Payne, who belonged to that denomination, and was minister of Baradon, Rutlandshire, preached the Gospel here, and had a Chapel erected. But Mr. Payne shortly after left the neighbourhood; and after repeated efforts by Baptist ministers, with but little success, the place was resigned into the hands of the Independents.

The Northamptonshire Association of Independent Churches took the place under their direction for a time, in connexion with Nassington, and the Rev. J. Matthews and the Rev. J. Dann laboured in these places, having their residence chiefly at the latter village. A Church was formed at Nassington on the 8th of April, 1835; and the present Chapel was opened for public worship on the 21st of May, 1839, when the Rev. B. Hobson, of Welford, and the Rev. E. T. Prust, of Northampton, preached.

In the year 1841 the station was taken into connexion with the Home Missionary Society. In March, 1844, the Rev. G. Amos, one of the Society's agents, was sent on probation, and accepted as the minister of the two Churches. On the 24th of June in that year his ordination took place, in the Chapel at Nassington: the ministers who engaged were the Rev. Messrs. Islip, of Stamford, Gammage, of Ketton, Goode, of Peterborough, Newth, of Oundle, Smith, of Wymondham. In October of that year Mr. Amos commenced his residence at King's Cliffe.

The ground on which the Chapel was first erected here being private property, and as no satisfactory arrangements for its purchase could be made, it was at length determined to give it up, and to build a new one. The present Independent Chapel in King's Cliffe was built in the year 1846; the opening services were held on the 29th of September. The Rev. J. Richardson, of Tottenham Court Chapel, London, preached two sermons on the occasion; and on the following Sabbath sermons were preached by the Rev. J. Matthews, of Shepton, Norfolk, the Rev. A. Newth, of Oundle, and the Rev. W. Robinson, of Kettering. A school-room was built in 1847, and opened for a Day-school in October of that year. The cost of the Chapel and the school-room was about £500. Of this sum, there now remains a debt of about £150. At Castor a neat Chapel was erected in 1848; the Rev. T. Toller, of Kettering, and the Rev. E. T. Prust, of Northampton, preached when it was opened for divine worship. There are thirty-seven members in the Church at King's Cliffe, and forty in the Church at Nassington—total, seventy-seven. The Sabbath-school in the former place has one hundred and thirty children, and the Sabbath-school in the latter place, seventy—total, two hundred.

2.—BOROUGH FEN.

This place is extra parochial, the property of Sir Culling Eardley Eardley, Bart., situated six miles north of Peterborough. The Gospel was introduced here about twenty years ago, by the Wesleyan Methodists; the preaching services were then conducted in a room of the house now occupied by the minister. In 1836 Sir Culling built a neat and spacious building, which is used both as a daily school-room and Chapel. For several years the preaching services were conducted by the master. A congregation having been thus collected, and Sunday-schools opened, it was considered to be a promising sphere for regular ministerial labour; and accordingly, in 1843, Mr. D. Blellock was stationed here as a Home Missionary. After the removal of Mr. Blellock in 1846, Mr. Alexander Yuill was settled here, who, after a few months of acceptable and useful labour, fell asleep in Jesus. In January, 1849, Mr. J. B. Bishop, the present pastor, was invited to settle over the congregation worshipping in this place and in Peakirk. Through Mr. Bishop's instrumentality a Christian Church was formed, March 30th, 1849, numbering thirteen members. The following places are connected with this station, viz.: Peakirk, Crowland (Lincolnshire), Glinton, and New Borough. There are now twenty-seven Church members, seventy-five Sabbath-school children, and one Day-school.

3.—MIDDLETON.

In the year 1844, a neat and commodious village Chapel, capable of seating near two hundred hearers, was erected here, at a cost of more than £300; and this year (1852) school-rooms have been added, which have cost nearly £100. It is supplied generally in the afternoon and evening of the Sabbath, and there is in connexion with it a Sabbath-school containing nearly one hundred children.

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