Clara Vale, Methodist Church Hall

HER Number:
7471

District:
Gateshead

Site Name:
Clara Vale, Methodist Church Hall

Place:
Clara Vale

Map Sheet:
NZ16SW

Class:
Civil

Site Type: Broad:
Meeting Hall

Site Type: Specific:
Church Hall

General Period:
Early Modern

Specific Period:
C19

Form of Evidence:
Extant Building

Description:
A good example of a corrugated iron church building. A simple box with a porch and rectangular hoodmoulded window openings and is painted green. Used as a Sunday School {2}. DESCRIPTION Single storey former chapel with gallery. Jade green painted corrugated iron walls and roof with white painted timber windows. Rectangular window frames with hood moulding over double lancet lights each with a transom to the centre. Entrance porch to north with 1st floor window above. Originally there were 2 vestries to the southern end but the timber partitions were removed (and sold) in 1899 due to space constraints. There are 3 bays to each side. The dimensions are 38’ long, 21’ wide with a height of 10’ to the eaves and 19’ to the ridge. Electric lighting was fitted in 1903, which was powered by the colliery. MATERIALS Corrugated iron, timber DATES 1897 planned & built 1909 became Sunday School STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE This former chapel is a good example of the building type, which was once a common sight in the North East but is becoming increasingly rare. They arose in special social and economic circumstances in which Methodism was very popular among the mining communities who had restrictive financial resources, and were initially intended to be temporary structures. The colour creates a strong visual impression, making a cheerful and distinctive contribution to the Conservation Area, and the window detailing adds to the building’s distinctiveness. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION The plot of land on which the chapel is built was initially rented from the Coal Company for £1 per annum. LOCAL LIST

Easting:
1339

Northing:
6486

Grid Reference:
NZ13396486

Lats/Lons:

Sources:
Gateshead Council Local List Fact Sheet X20/LL/091; Gateshead Council, April 1999, Conservation Area Policy Guidelines, Strategies and Character Statements, Clara Vale Conservation Area, p 33; Harry Watson, 1997, Clara Vale - The Story of a Pit Village